Programming
by 1breezybri
Summary: Bella is a plus-sized woman who loves her life. When she meets a man who has never been with a big girl before, she is reminded of the difficulties of a past relationship that left her broken. Can she overcome her insecurities and make him fall in love?
1. Prologue

DC: SM owns all.

Prologue

From the outside looking in, my life would seem damn near perfect. My family is like a cookie, sweet with a few nuts. My friends are my life support. My job is my dream.

I grew up priveleged by many standards. My parents, though divorced, never made me want for anything. In their eyes, I was better than they were. I was what they could never be. I was brazen and headstrong and successful.

I never dated much. I used the excuse of my parents divorce to cushion me from that world of potential heartache and regret. At some point, I decided that I would rather sit at home with ice cream and a movie than to go out and risk my emotional sanity and my ego.

When I was in college, I fell in love hard. We dated for a year and moved in together. Two months later, he was a different person. No, he wasn't. He was exactly the same. I just got to see more of it.

Near the end of our relationship, I came home to find that he had cheated on me with this swizzle stick of a woman that he met online. She was in our home. Sitting on our couch. Fucking my boyfriend.

I've never felt such rage as I did that night. She left and I kicked him and punched him and gave him back as much of the hurt as I could that he had given me. Then I locked myself in "our room" and cried myself to sleep.

I spent the month afterwards trying to figure out a new living arrangement. The time I had to spend in that house after we broke up was nothing short of gut-wrenching. I drove to work every day with a boulder in my stomach and a fluttering in my chest. My world felt like it was imploding.

Before him, I was a fun-loving, intelligent, secure, confident, young woman. After him, I was distant, shaky, and as insecure as I'd ever been in my entire life. If it wasn't for my friends who stayed by my side until I was sane enough to function again, I'm not sure I would have made it.

My world changed drastically afterward even with my friends involvement. I sought out male attention to prove that I could have what I wanted. You would be surprised how many men want to sleep with bigger girls. Sleep with, but not date. A girl gets tired of hearing "You have such a pretty face, if only you'd lose a few pounds."

Fast forward a few years and my mindset has somewhat changed. Baggage aside, I'm pretty damn fantastic and I know it. The junk in my trunk has made it difficult to show men who I am. Unless they are willing to look past the physical and really see me, I am often cast aside before I even have a chance to utter my name in introduction.

I'm not even sure I know how to be truly intimate with a man. The first and only time I let someone in, they hurt me so badly that it took me years to begin to overcome their damage.

What happens if I let him in and he shatters me? I may be a big girl, but I have a thin skin and I'm not sure if I can handle another heartbreak.

I don't know how I can be so confident in the rest of my life and so utterly incompetent when it comes to love.


	2. Chapter 1 What a dish

**AN: This is my first foray into fanfic. Reviews are love.**

**Disclaimer: I own plenty. Just not Twilight.**

**

**Chapter 1 – What a dish**

BPOV

The perfect combination of salty and tangy was dancing lightly on my tongue and down my throat. I had waited months for this taste and was finally satisfied.

"Did you like that Bells?" Jacob laughed lightly.

"I can't even begin to tell you. The taste was well worth the wait." I replied, my head still reeling.

"Well, make sure to put that in your review. You know they love it when you're as descriptive as possible. The big guys like to call you 'Hemingway.' Did I ever tell you that?"

I put the fork down slowly. "Hemingway? I wouldn't go quite _that_ far. I guess I just can't help myself though. When something is this amazing, I want the readers to feel like they are there with me, enjoying the flavors and aromas in the same ways."

The waiter came over to ask us if we'd like more wine. As usual, Jacob asked for another glass. One was my limit if I wanted to remain coherent. As the kitchen doors opened for the waiter to pass through, I saw the Sous Chef, Demetri, pacing nervously while we finished our meal. Poor guy. It had to be difficult as a chef. Every single time you enacted your craft, there was a chance something could go wrong. You could burn a sauce and leave the entrée tasting of smoke. You could undercook a meat dish and ruin your reputation in a single evening. It had to be torturous.

Luckily, Demetri and Felix, the Executive Chef, were at the top of their game. This mushroom and mascarpone ravioli was fantastic. The pungent flavor of the mushrooms was offset by the mellow creaminess of the sauce that the ravioli were nestled in. It was sure to be one of their signature dishes. Both chefs had come from two separate establishments where they were hindered and not allowed to fully express themselves through their cooking. For a chef, that is a nightmare. They wanted to put their hearts and souls into their food, so they formed an alliance.

Volterra was a beautiful Italian bistro in downtown Durham, North Carolina, and was doing very well. Good Italian food was hard to come by in the dirty South and it had very little competition. Maggiano's at the Southpoint Mall was their only real rival and the mall was on the outskirts of town near the suburbs.

I was proud of them. I had reviewed their work at their previous restaurants in Charlotte, three hours west of Durham, but nothing compared to Volterra. They had the winning combination.

"Are you almost done?" I asked Jake.

"Sure, sure. Do you have your notes? Can't leave without the golden goose's notes," he chided me.

Golden goose my ass. This was my first job out of college and I was just happy to be doing what I loved. I had interned for Jacob during college at a small independently owned publication that reviewed locations, activities, and events in and around the Raleigh/Durham area. Jake oversaw locations and that included my specialty, restaurants. When I finished up my double major in Culinary Arts and Journalism at NC State, he immediately offered me a position at "Locality, NC." Since then, I've finished up an MBA at UNC and I'm looking forward to climbing the ladder in a few years.

Jake and I waited outside for the valet to bring his car around. He stood there, shifting uneasily from one foot to the other.

"Do you want to go get a drink or something?" he asked.

"You just had three glasses of wine. What's left to drink?"

"I don't know," he sighed. "I guess I'm just not ready to go home yet."

"Leah again?"

He looked away, ashamed. "Yeah, well, I mean, come on. I'm only 32. I'm not sure if I want to settle down yet, you know?"

"Well, I'm only 26 but I guess if I was 32 and with someone for over three years, I'd want to settle down too. I can't speak for you two though. I don't know her well enough."

"I just," he sighed, "sometimes it feels like she just wants to be married. Not like she actually wants to marry _me_. Heh, guess I should have thought about that before I proposed, no?"

"Maybe. Sex does stupid things to peoples' brains."

"No doubt," he agreed vehemently.

The valet brought the car around. Jake was fidgeting and after a few minutes, I snapped a little bit.

"Dude, seriously! If you aren't sure then don't do it, it's as simple as that."

He sighed and glanced over at me. He looked beaten down.

"I just wish I knew if it was the right decision, you know? Out of all five of my brothers, only Sam, Quil and Paul are still with their wives. Embry and Jared went through such horrible divorces. I don't even like thinking about it. I really only want to do this once, so I want to do it right."

He seemed to be ending the conversation with that thought so I just nodded my head and sat there looking out the window at the passing trees and houses.

**

Jake drove me home to my condo in Woodcroft. I had bought it the year after I finished my MBA and had worked diligently on making small renovations that would hopefully make a big impact whenever the housing market bounced back. Woodcroft was a prime location – within a half hour drive of the three major universities in the area: University of North Carolina, Duke and NC State. If I could modernize its twenty-plus year-old fixtures, remove the hideous popcorn ceilings and give it a fresh coat of paint, I could sell it for a pretty penny and make some young graduate very happy.

I said goodnight to Jake and walked up the stairs to the second floor. My parents had always taught me that if you are going to live alone, you must always live on the second floor or above for the sake of security. Thieves, rapists, and murderers, didn't want to deal with stairs, they had told me. I figured I had a built in defense for the rapists seeing as I was a plus-size girl. You always hear about rapes occurring because the perpetrator said their victim "was askin' for it" by wearing suggestive clothing. That was not a problem with me. The only thing in my life that I was shy about was my size 16 body.

My parents' hypothesis proved false last year, however, when my house was broken into while I was at the office. They made off with over $3,000 in jewelry, electronics, and power tools. They could have it all, because they didn't harm the one thing in the world that made me smile on a daily basis. Jessie. My beautiful little dachshund.

Jessie was 3 years old and the light of my life. I got her from Independent Animal Rescue when she was just a little pup. She was all black except for some tan markings over her eyes, on her muzzle, and on her paws. Jessie greeted me at the door every single time with such excitement and abandon that I knew I could never settle down with a man who couldn't afford me the same treatment. A five minute absence to run out to my car was met with the same wild wiggling of her body as a full day out of the house. When she was younger, she would get so flustered that she would pee a small bit when I came home. I wouldn't hold a man to _that_, though. That would be weird.

Scrappy little girl barely let me disarm my security alarm (installed exactly 15 hours after I'd come home to my ransacked house) before she was under my feet and jumping up on my legs to get my attention. As if I could ignore her. I loved this part of any day.

Rosalie, my friend and roommate, however, was not so keen on having a dog. She was very particular about how she wanted things and a dog was somewhat unpredictable and too rowdy for her perfect ideals. Aside from this glaring faux pas in my eyes, we got along pretty well as roommates. I was afraid at first. They say you should never live with a friend for fear of ending the friendship. We had both gone to East Chapel Hill high school, although she graduated two years earlier than I did.

**

I'll never forget the first time we met on my first day of sophomore year. The high school was tenth grade through twelfth so I had a new locker as well as a new school to adjust to. My locker hated me. Upon getting the lock combination from the secretary in the office, I tried it only to figure out that she must have given me the wrong one for that lock. Another trip to the office got me the right combination, but then the lock jammed and I found myself pulling on the lock and cursing loudly in the middle of the hallway.

"You have to push it up first and then pull on it."

I turned around and glared at her. She was 5'9", 120 pounds, and platinum blonde. If you looked up the word "knockout" in the dictionary, you'd see two pictures – Muhammad Ali and Rosalie Hale.

"How do _you_ know?" I replied testily.

"I had that one last year. I pulled so hard that I lost my grip and flew backwards into Mr. Banner. Let's just say English class was not so great that semester. I'm Rosalie," she held her hand out to shake mine.

"Bella Swan."

"Swan? Your dad's a cop, right?"

"Yeah, he's the chief," I bragged.

"I know. He busted me and my friends last year for drinking under the bleachers at the stadium." She looked pissed.

"Oh."

"Heh, I'm just fuckin with ya. Don't worry about it. We just had to be more creative with our meeting spots."

After that first day, I would see Rosalie all the time in the halls between classes. She was one of the few seniors that would actually deign to speak to a sophomore. Her twin brother, Jasper, was pretty fantastic himself. He took to me like a big brother to a little sister and chances were if I wasn't with Rose, I was with Jasper.

It broke my heart when they graduated ECH, but Rose started working for her dad at his car dealership on route 15-501 and Jas was a few miles away at UNC studying occupational therapy, so I still got to see them pretty frequently. He was a little disappointed, however, when I decided to go to State instead of UNC. My family just didn't have that kind of money and UNC was almost double State. Honestly, the only thing that allowed me to go there for grad school was that I had earned some financial aid and the company paid for the rest.

Rosalie started out at the dealership as a floor associate, trying to get the attention of any prospective buyers before they had a chance to say "Just looking." Now, over ten years later, she was the supervisory mechanic. Who would have ever thought that Prom Queen Rosalie Hale would ever even _think_ about touching the inner workings of a vehicle, let alone master them? Thanks to her, though, my car was in tip top shape and I never needed to pay for an oil change or a tire rotation. I couldn't argue with that.

It was an easy decision to live together when I bought the condo. She had been an older sister to me, a protector. Her boyfriend, Emmett, was a laugh and a half too, so that didn't hurt. He was always over and definitely had the protective big brother thing going for him. They had met when he walked into the dealership and demanded to speak to the mechanic about a brake job that he had done there. When Rose sauntered out in her little jumpsuit, his anger toward the mechanic turned into lust for the manager in the blink of an eye. Instead of someone's head on a stick, he walked out with Rosalie's phone number.

The first time I met Emmett was three months later and the first words out of his mouth were, "Whoa! Bella got _back_!" Rosalie smacked him in the chest and I put my head down, ashamed that he was so open about saying my butt was so big.

"Hey, I like it. You're a hot little mama! If you got it, flaunt it!" he said as he pulled me in for a hug. A few more hugs and some noogies later, and Emmett and I were friends. We've all been hanging together since and it's been a blast so far. A girl couldn't ask for more. Her own home, a furbaby to come home to, a fantastic job she loves, and friends to share her life with. Yeah, I was one of the lucky ones.

**

I got Jessie's harness and leash on her and walked out the door. Jessie immediately ran next door to Angela's condo. She was away on business again and since we had become close after being neighbors for so long, I helped take care of her pug, Laurie, since her live-in boyfriend Ben often worked long hours. Our two girls were in love with each other. They would sniff everything together and if there was a noise, they would back each other up as they went to investigate. It was precious.

After a nice long walk on the Tobacco Trail, I dropped Laurie off at Angela and Ben's and Jessie and I settled into our little home. Rose was gone, maybe out with Emmett. I was procrastinating writing the review up so I decided to catch up on some fanfiction. I had found a new set of books that I was absolutely enamored with and some of the fanfic they came up with was addictive.

I read a few chapters of ones on my favorites list that had been updated. Then, I finally came to grips with the fact that I should write up my review while it was still fresh in my head. Notes or not, sometimes you need something to be at the forefront of your brain in order to be able to explain it properly.

I got a glass of wine and began to type. The words flowed from my fingers like a waterfall. I couldn't imagine living in any other time but this one. I loved the ease with which I could get the thoughts out of my head and out onto digital paper. I was maybe halfway done with my outlined bullet points when the screen blinked. The notebook began to whirr softly and before I knew it, my beautiful half-review was replaced by these weird vertical lines covering the entire screen!

I. Flipped. Out.

Once I found the number for the local Apple store, I dialed the number for their Applecare. The voice on the phone let me know that I should be waiting to speak to someone for exactly eighteen minutes due to high call volume. Eighteen?! Macs are supposed to be indestructible! What fuckery is this!

Finally, after some ridiculously bad musak, I heard a click and a live voice came on the line.

"Thank you for calling Applecare. My name is Edward. How can I help you?"

**

**Ok...good/bad/indifferent...just let me know? Ty :oP**


	3. Chapter 2 I just called to say

**AN: Shocked that anyone even read it, let alone reviewed and liked it! **

**Disclaimer: I own pink converse sneakers, but not Twilight.**

**

_Finally, I heard a click and a live voice came on the line._

"Thank you for calling Applecare. My name is Edward. How can I help you?"

**Chapter 2 – I just called to say**

BPOV

"Hi, my Mac is eating itself. What do I do?"

"What is it doing?" the man on the phone asked.

"EATING ITSELF!" I know I sounded like a lunatic and I could not care less.

"Heh, no, I mean what, specifically, is it doing?" he chuckled slightly.

"Oh, I was writing my review and it freaked out and now there are these lines all over the screen. Did it erase my article?"

"Do you have auto save enabled?" he questioned.

"…I have no idea. Is that bad?"

My heart was pounding and my hands were trembling. I could no doubt rewrite one review, but what if my computer was really sick and I lost my files. The last time I had backed up onto an external hard drive was four months ago. That was a ridiculous amount of work to lose. Most of the articles on my computer were drafts that had not been published yet. I would lose my entire reserve if I couldn't get them back.

Not good.

"Ok, we'll figure it out. What computer do you have?"

"Macbook Pro. It's only a year old."

"Alright, what is your OS?" he asked.

What the hell is an ahs.

"What is an 'ahs'?" I was puzzled.

"Heh, operating system. You know, PCs use Windows. What do you use?"

At least he was patient with me.

"OH! I think it's the Jaguar." I said, proud that I had remembered something technical.

"Leopard?"

I sighed. So much for being technical.

"Oh, yeah! Sorry, it's a company computer."

"Ok, these lines, what do they look like?"

"They're just colored vertical lines covering the whole screen." I hoped that description would be sufficient enough for someone who knew Macs, because I didn't.

"Ah, ok. I think you just have to reset your PRAM – that's parameter random access memory. It shouldn't take long. Let's go ahead and restart your computer and I'll tell you what key combinations to hold down while it's rebooting."

After I restarted the computer while pressing the correct keys, the lines were gone and he was able to show me that I did have the auto save enabled so my review, as well as my stored draft articles, were safe and sound. I made a silent resolve to back up my hard drive tomorrow since it was Saturday and I'd have plenty of time.

"Holy crow, thank you Edward! I love you!" I clasped my hand over my mouth and my face and neck felt hot. I knew I was blushing. I cannot believe I just said that out loud to this poor guy who saved my computer.

"You're welcome…?" He sounded as if he was waiting for me to finish his sentence.

"Oh! Bella, Bella Swan." I said hoping he would let my little outburst of affection go.

"Well, Bella, Bella Swan, I'm Edward, Edward Cullen. I figure we should at least exchange names before you profess your love to me."

Did I hear a chuckle?

"I…I'm sorry. I was just so excited. I guess we're done then?"

"Wow. I've had some short relationships in my life, but this one tops out."

That time he was definitely laughing at me.

"Ha ha, well, thank you for your help Edward. At least one of us kept their cool and you had a very soothing voice even though I was a panicky freak of nature."

"Anytime, Bella Swan. You were lovely." He paused for what seemed like an eternity. "Thank you for calling Applecare."

He just said I was lovely. I blushed again and began to stammer my words.

"I…I….Thank you….Bye."

I hung up feeling a bit warm. I saved my article again just to be safe and powered down my computer. The next time I turned that bitch on would be tomorrow when I backed it up.

I finished my glass of wine out on the patio of the condo and brought Jessie outside to sit with me and enjoy the night air. She was so cute. She turned around at least four times before plopping down on the far corner of the deck as if there was a bed there, when really, it was just the wooden slats beneath her.

The stars were coming out. We were just out of range of the lights of downtown so we could see them perfectly. I loved to sit out here on the lounger and just stare up into the sky. To imagine all of the things we can't see from this world. Of course there was other life out there. There had to be. There was too much space and too much unknown for it to be just us. I always thought it was funny how some people insisted that we were the only living planet in the solar system, let alone the galaxy. Impossible.

I must have dozed off at some point because I woke up to Jessie snoring in the corner. I picked up my empty glass and as soon as I moved, Jessie was up and wiggling her little body all around my legs.

We went inside to get ready for bed. After a quick shower, I got comfy in my usual warm-weather sleeping combo – panties and a tank top. The humidity here was ridiculous and even with the air conditioner on, you'd be surprised how muggy the air was all the time.

I let Jessie onto the bed and climbed in to get comfortable. It had been a stressful evening and sleep came easily.

**

Morning came sooner than I'd hoped for and I awoke with a groan. Jessie was lying next to my face wagging her tail and giving me kisses on my cheek. I got up, put a bra and some shorts on, and took her for a walk around on the grass down outside the complex. I saw my new neighbors, Peter and Charlotte, pruning their herb garden on their ground floor deck. I was never into gardening. I guess you could say I have a brown thumb.

I'm a fish killer too. In college, I got a baby shark and a suckerfish to keep the tank clean. One week after I got them, I went away for the night with friends and when I got back, the suckerfish had died. The tank was filthy and the shark wasn't doing so well. I had a feeling it was going to die so I stayed up with it until it finally took its last breath around 5:30 the next morning. At the end, its breaths were so labored and it let me softly stroke its side, pushing into the touch of another living thing as if it knew it was saying goodbye.

I was so distraught that I called my father hysterically. He was already at work at the station, but he took the call and soothed me as much as he could over the phone. Later he told me that when he got off the phone, a colleague came up to console him for the loss. My dad explained to him that it was his adult daughter's fish that died. The colleague just put his hand on my dad's shoulder and said, "Oh man, I know that's gotta be hard on someone. Losing a pet like that."

My father wanted to laugh but just nodded and walked off.

He may not have appreciated the condolences for a fish, but I sure did and I was glad he told me. I sent the colleague flowers anonymously and my dad always suspected that it was me, but I never owned up to it.

We got home from our walk and I got her dishes up off the floor so that I could fill them with water and her special food. She has Colitis which is an inflammation of the large intestine, so if she eats too much fat, she gets the poops. I buy a low-fat lamb and rice recipe and she loves it, so it's a win-win.

I got dressed in a pair of khaki capris and a teal short-sleeve shirt and got ready to run my errands. I had to swing by the mall to see if the new restaurant guide for the area had made it to Barnes & Noble yet. I was told I had a shot at being quoted for a review I did over in Raleigh. It was supposed to be out last week, but sometimes book releases get held back for one reason or another.

I drove the ten minutes down the road to the mall and parked as far away from the doors as I could so that I would be forced to walk and get in a little exercise. Everyone always said that was the best way because you did something healthy and you protected your car by being further away from the craziness of the lucrative front parking spaces.

The humidity was the only thing about North Carolina that I really wasn't fond of. After being here for a large part of my life, I was getting used to it. My dad had moved us here when he got the Chief job during my freshman year of high school. I could get used to it, but that didn't mean I had to actually like it.

My mom and I spoke often on the phone, but she had gotten remarried to someone a few years younger than she was, so she was always trying to prove she could keep up. I loved her and her crazy, erratic ways. She wasn't always accessible in a mom capacity, but she was very caring and she always made me laugh.

After wandering around the mall doing a little window shopping, I got to Barnes & Noble and they had the book. Right away, I flopped down on the floor in front of the shelf that I had just plucked the book from and began flipping through the pages to see the "Raleigh" section. Sure enough, there it was! They used an excerpt from my review for their book. I couldn't wait to show Jake! I loved when I got to update the ol' resume. It made me feel accomplished.

I got on line and paid for the book and walked out of the book store and back out into the mall. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the Apple symbol down the walkway from where I was standing. I thought, "what the hell…I'll go thank Edward for helping me yesterday…and I can also check out the iPods while I'm in there." I already had a 30 GB video iPod but it was a bit of a clunker and I was thinking of a cute little nano for everyday use. Maybe in blue.

The Apple store always looked so sleek and modern. It also made me feel like a Dell on the day after Christmas. My Macbook was technically owned by my company. I doubt I would have spent the money on it if it was coming from my own bank account.

I walked in and was accosted by a very chipper sales associate. His name was Eric. And he loved Apple products. A lot. I politely told him I was just looking and went to find another employee to inquire as to Edward's whereabouts.

A few minutes later, a sweet looking teenager came out of the Employees Only area and I decided she was more approachable than Eric Apple.

"Excuse me, hi. I was wondering if Edward was working today?"

"Who?"

"Edward. He works in AppleCare."

"Sorry. There's no Edward in AppleCare."

What is she talking about? I just spoke with him last night. I was tired, but not delusional.

"I spoke to an Edward Cullen last night when I called in for my Mac. Are you new?"

"Oh, you mean Mr. Cullen. Yeah. He's not here today; it's Saturday."

She began to walk away and I stopped her. She was very frustrating for such a sweet looking young girl. Then again, she was a teenager.

"Well, if you could, would you tell him that Bella Swan stopped by to thank him for his help?"

I enunciated each syllable of my name very carefully to try to improve the chances that she would remember it.

"Yeah, sure, have a nice day."

I sighed. I don't remember ever being like that as a teen. Even Rosalie who had attitude for miles had more respect, especially for a customer where she worked.

No use letting it get to me though. It's universal.

I wandered over to the iPods and immediately had a tech crush on the pretty blue nano. The 16 GB one was almost $200 but I knew I could get it on Amazon for a bit less plus free shipping. Ahh, the life of a single homeowner. Internet shopping and coupons were a way of life.

On the way home, I was stopped at a red light and noticed Jake in his car next to me. I waved at him and when the light turned green, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. I pulled it out to check the text and it was Jake.

_Lunch? -J_

I saw him in my rearview mirror now, directly behind me. I started punching keys one-handed without ever taking my eyes off the road. I had skillz.

_El Dorado, c u in a few. -B_

I pulled into the parking lot of the little Mexican restaurant shortly after that. Jake was behind me and parked in the spot next to mine.

El Dorado was fantastic. The food was delectable and the atmosphere was very quaint. The middle-aged owners knew us by name after our first review and as we fell in love with them, they fell in love with us as well.

"Bella, Jacob! Come, sit! Eleazar, go and get them some wine!" Carmen shouted to her husband. "Here, take a booth, relax! What are you two up to today?" She winked at Jake.

He sighed and stood by the booth, allowing me to choose which side I wanted before he sat. Carmen and Eleazar had long been hoping that Jake and I would "end up together" and made it known every time we showed up at the restaurant. It didn't bother Jake but it made my whole face turn a bashful pink. Jake had been such a good friend to me for so long that it seemed strange to ever think of him as anything else.

"Just out running errands and we bumped into each other so we thought we would pay a visit to our favorite little restaurant on the strip." Jake really knew how to butter up Carmen. She ate it up.

"Ah, there. You see? Nothing is accidental." She said, matter-of-factly.

Eleazar rounded the corner by the kitchen and brought us a small carafe of their delicious Mexican wine that they buy online every month from Casa de Piedra. The wine is made in Baja, California but it transports you to the warm, spicy air of Mexico with every sip. Eleazar's granddaughter was right behind him with some tortilla chips and salsa for the table.

Eleazar nudged my shoulder and gave me a little smile as he turned to go back to the kitchen with Carmen. He had also been pulling for Jake and I to get together and was highly disappointed when Jake had finally popped the question to Leah.

"So what were you getting at the mall?" I asked Jake as I reached for a chip.

**

**I know it seems like a weird stopping place....but there's a method to my madness. I hope you liked it. :o)**


	4. Chapter 3 Beneath the surface

**AN: Thanks to everyone who's read and reviewed!!**

**Disclaimer: I own the clutter that surrounds my desk...but not Twilight.**

_**_

_"So what were you getting at the mall?" I asked Jake as I reached for a chip._

**Chapter 3 – Beneath the surface**

BPOV

"Oh, I wasn't getting anything. Just having a coffee with a friend."

Before I had a chance to ask who he was having coffee with, he changed the subject.

"What were you doing there, Bells?"

"Well...guess who was featured in the Raleigh section of 'The Triangle Restaurant Guide'?" I stuck my nose up in the air proudly. "No autographs, please."

"No shit! That's great, Bella. I got a call from the editor to ask a few questions about you and to discuss your being in contention, but this is fantastic. Now all you need is to work on the other two sides of the Triangle and you'll be quite the triple-threat," he teased.

The "Triangle", as it was well-known in our area, and nationally in certain circles, referred to the area between the three main hubs of activity around the major colleges in the area. Raleigh had NC State, Durham had Duke, and Chapel Hill had UNC.

"Hey...can't I enjoy one little victory before you push me to win the crown?"

"No way. I know you have it in you."

I knew I did too. I'm not one for false modesty. I am damn good at what I do and it's just nice to be recognized and paid to do it.

"I know," I said lazily. That elicited an evil smirk from Jake.

Eleazar and his granddaughter brought over "the usual" for Jake and I and we immediately dug in. We both got combination plates. Jake got the chalupa, chile relléno, and beef burrito plate. I got the veggie plate that had a bean burrito, a cheese enchilada, and a tostada with refried beans and cheese. For lack of a better phrase, it was an "orgasm in your mouth."

Jake's face and neck started sweating after a few bites of the spicy chile relléno and I was enamored with my cheese enchilada. The light brown sauce was creamy and slightly salty. Every few bites, I would take a bite of the pasty refried bean tostada to cut the saltiness. The menu here was expertly designed. Each dish had complementary components that allowed you to feel completely satisfied when you were finished. All you needed was a little something sweet at the end, if you could fit any more, and it was perfect.

"Did you start the review from Volterra yet?"

"Oh! That reminds me. My computer decided to have an aneurism last night." I took a bite of my bean burrito.

Jake put his fork full of beef burrito down and looked up with fear in his eyes. "What. Happened."

"There were these colored lines and whirring noises and it wasn't pretty," I said laughingly.

"Bella, that's not funny! What are you going to do now? Is it ok? Did you lose your article? What about your drafts! When was the last time you backed up the hard drive?" He was really antsy now and I was feeling mischievous.

"What's that?" I said innocently.

"What.....what's _what_? Don't you know what a hard drive is??"

"Of course I know what a hard drive is, Jacob," I snorted pretending to play it off.

I got serious, "What is "backing up?"

Jake dropped his head in his hands, groaning.

"Bella....Bella, no. Are you telling me you've lost all your stuff?" He didn't look up.

I waited a few seconds for the sake of dramatics.

"Well, apparently I haven't lost _all_ of my _stuff_ because I just got _you_."

His head snapped up and with trepidation in his eyes, he said, "Explain. Now."

"Ok, ok...don't be angry. There's nothing to worry about. I called AppleCare and they were able to restore something called PRAM and since I had autosave enabled, I didn't lose anything," his face relaxed. "I do need to backup the hard drive when I get home though. I haven't done it in a few months and I think I'd be tempting fate if I held off any longer."

"You are a brat. You do know that, don't you?" I grinned widely as I cut another piece of my enchilada and plopped it in my mouth. He was right. I was.

"You scared the crap out of me. I really wish you would take advantage of your resources and upload your drafts to the company server."

"Jake, you know I am uncomfortable with people having access to my articles before they're finished. Plus I have my own stuff on my computer too, you know. Short stories and such. I wouldn't feel comfortable putting those on the server even if you do keep offering."

Besides, I had a little fanfic of my own on there and it was _not_ suitable for a work server.

"Ok, I tried. At least the Apple place was able to help you. Did they say to do anything other than back it up?"

"No, that's all. Edward didn't mention anything else and I was going to talk to him today but he wasn't there..." I caught myself a little too late and Jake's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Who's Edward?"

Crap.

I didn't like discussing guys with Jacob because he always got weird. He seemed resentful of my single status and I didn't want to make him feel worse about his relationship than he probably already did.

"The AppleCare person I spoke with over the phone. He knew his stuff and I never really thanked him properly," I could feel my cheeks beginning to blush.

"What would you consider proper thanks?" Jake's eyes clouded over and his demeanor changed. I was a little nervous about this reaction, to tell the truth.

"I don't know. Actually _saying_ 'thank you' might have been a start, but I was so excited on the phone that I really didn't think about it until after we hung up." It registered in my mind that I had just told Jake, my friend and boss, that I was excited on the phone with Edward and needed to thank him "properly."

"You know, anxious about almost losing my work," I amended.

Jake picked up his fork slowly and resumed eating his burrito. I knew he was protective of me but sometimes the sheer jealousy that I saw in his eyes unnerved me. It made me want to tell him not to get married. If he was so jealous of someone single who was meeting new people and who didn't have the same set of responsibilities he did, then he should either get over it or get out.

I thought he was going to let it go when I noticed he was staring at me from across the table.

"Ask me again why I was at the mall," he said grimly.

"Why?"

"I was getting free coffee from a barista at the coffee shop near the bookstore. She thinks I'm cute."

His gaze dropped from mine and he resumed eating.

I continued to gape at him. Is he freaking kidding me? He needs to figure out what the hell he wants and he needs to do it soon. The wedding was only a few months away and most of the planning had already been done. The people, the deposits, and the vendors. None of that really mattered, of course. If he didn't want to be with Leah, then he should not lead her on and allow her to believe his heart was in this.

"Jake."

He would not look at me.

"Jacob," I said more forcefully and he glanced up at me through his eyelashes. I immediately calmed a bit. His eyes were so torn. So broken.

"You know you have to choose. Either you are ready for this or you aren't. The sooner you figure it out, the better for everyone involved, don't you think?"

"It's too late. Everything is basically done. I just have to show up and sign my life away."

I sighed. If this was how he truly felt, then he definitely was not ready. He needed to break it off.

"Don't marry Leah."

He reached his hand over the table to cover mine and I put my other one over his. His eyes widened and his mouth opened slightly like he was about to say something, but he hesitated.

I did not envy his position at all. Afraid to give up who you are for someone you are not sure you want to be with. I guess to him, it _would_ feel like signing your life away.

Carmen came rounding the corner and stopped short when she saw our hands on each others. I immediately pulled mine back into my lap for fear that it would set her wheels-a-workin but she was already grinning like a giddy child. She brought over the check and Jake got his wallet out to pay for the both of us.

The grin widened.

"Oh my, Bella. What a gentleman your Jacob is. We'll see you two in here next time." She winked and waved as she took the money and tip away.

I grabbed my bag and rose from the table and walked over to hug Eleazar who was standing near the magazine rack at the front door.

I just kept walking right out the door to my car and Jake was right on my heels. I turned around and almost smacked my face off of his chest.

"Whoa, sorry Bells," Jake stammered.

I sighed again. I sincerely hoped he didn't think I was being too harsh on him back in there.

"Look, I like Leah. I do. Which is why you need to figure your shit out so she doesn't wind up with a husband who doesn't want to be one. If you really feel like you'd be signing yourself away, then you shouldn't do it."

Before I could say anything else, Jake had his arms around me and was hugging me something fierce. His face was in my hair and it was the tightest hug I'd had in a long time. I was relieved that he didn't think I was being cold about his relationship with Leah. He seemed to genuinely need a friend.

He pulled away and held onto my shoulders as he spoke, "Thank you Bella. It means a lot to have someone to talk to. My brothers have been hot or cold about this whole thing. The ones that are still married are pushing for me to do it and the ones that are divorced are shooting off warning flares."

I chuckled and extricated myself from his ginormous hands. I clicked the unlock button on the key fob and got in the car.

"Any time, Jake. You know that by now."

"Yeah, I do."

I closed the door and waved as I pulled out of the lot and got on the main road back home.

**

EPOV

It was a beautiful Saturday in the Triangle. I had jogged the Tobacco Trail by my house late this morning and then swam some laps in the pool of the housing complex. I took a quick shower and then headed out to Guglhupf for a late brunch at around 2:30pm.

That place was amazing. It started out years ago as a small German bakery and then was expanded to include an industrial, yet quaint, two-story cafe. My favorite item on the menu was, by far, the Eggs Arnold. Not to be confused with the Eggs Benedict. The Arnold had a large, thick piece of fresh homemade bread, toasted to a medium brown. On top of the bread were three different types of salty cheeses and some baby spinach leaves. There were two perfectly poached eggs on top of the spinach and the whole thing was drizzled with a hollandaise sauce that would make Wolfgang cry.

As usual, I left them a generous tip and headed home.

I dropped the keys on the hall table and grabbed a glass of ice water before I sat down on the couch in the living room. I logged into my email to find that I had one notification from work. I was not a fan of having to work on my days off, but it was my job to at least call in and find out if they needed me.

"This is Sam..."

"Samantha, Edward Cullen. I received a page through my email. Is everything alright?"

"Oh, hi Mr. Cullen. Yes, everything is fine. A customer came in looking for you and she wanted me to tell you 'thank you.'"

She?

"Oh? Who was it?"

"Let me check the note, hold on one second, please," I heard some rustling and was growing impatient.

What customer would come into the store and ask for me by name?

"Bella Swan."

Say what now?

"Ah. Did she leave a way to contact her?"

"No, sir. Just to say 'thank you' and then she left. Although we have some information on file."

"No, that would not be appropriate. Thank you Samantha. I will see you next week," I hung up feeling warm. I felt like I needed to take my shirt off to escape the heat that was gliding up my neck.

Bella, Bella Swan. The lovely female caller from yesterday. Her personality was intriguing. She seemed to be something of an oxymoron; she was brazen and outspoken one minute, and shy and quiet the next.

Her voice was comforting even in her fits of anxiety at the thought of losing her work on the phone last night. I was glad that I was able to help her.

I had just shut my laptop and grabbed the remote for the television when my cell phone started to buzz in my pocket. I muted the television and looking at my phone, I flipped it open.

"Dickhead," I answered, oh so lovingly.

"Hi Assbasket. What are you doin?"

"I was thinking of watching a movie. You?"

"I just got off the phone with your sister and she wants to go dancing tonight. You in?"

Alice. My baby sister. And Jasper. My best friend.

It wasn't always so easy to discuss their relationship even in the most minute and abstract ways. Eventually, it became more comfortable as the realities were more easily handled than the scenarios I made up in my head about my poor, helpless baby sister. She was neither poor, nor helpless, and she could handle herself just fine. Secretly, I was proud that those fiery qualities she inhabited were what drew Jas to her in the first place.

"Where? Buckhead?" Please say yes. Then I can say no because I hate that back hills place.

"No, we were thinking over in Chapel Hill. A place or two on Franklin Street. What do you think?"

Ah, more my speed.

"Yeah, I'm in. What time?"

"Well, Alice wanted to do dinner first..." he sounded hesitant.

"...and?"

"At your house." He said it quickly, like ripping a Band-aid off a small child. "But we would bring everything, you know she can't cook. She wants to go to Jersey Mike's and get some subs. We would come over around 9. Then we can pregame for a while and then call a taxi for 11. Is that...ok?"

My sister was a force of nature and her boyfriend was a tree branch, bending to her will.

"Yeah, sounds good, but we don't need a taxi. I'll DD. I'll see you two at 9."

I hung up and unmuted the television. I brought up the HBO on Demand menu and scrolled through. IFC on Demand was previewing a new movie by this British actor everyone was making a stink about. I wondered what all the fuss was and loaded up the movie.

While it was processing, I made a bag of popcorn in the microwave and got a bottled sweet tea out of the fridge.

The sountrack alone made me chuckle and it turned out to be a pretty good movie. He was able to make a pathetic dork of a young man into someone with a heart and a little bit of soul. I'd have to look into more of his stuff.

I must have dozed off shortly after it ended because I woke up 3 hours later in a sweaty ball on the couch. It was almost 8 o'clock and if I didn't take another shower, I would be stuck going out with "couch hair."

Showered and dressed, I opened up iTunes and put some music on. I got three glasses out of the cabinet and filled them with ice.

At exactly 9 o'clock, the bell rang.

**

**Hmm...EPOV is difficult. Not sure I like it just yet. We shall see! **

**Reviews are love!!**


	5. Chapter 4 Revelry

A/N: I feel so lucky to be telling this story. It's one I've seldom seen in reality, let alone in the fanfic world. I hope you like it!

The title comes from Kings of Leon's album "Only By The Night." It's phenomenal. Well worth the investment. Go, shop, buy.

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns it all.

**

Chapter 4 – Revelry

BPOV

When I got home, Jessie was all wiggles and drools to see me and I took her out for a short walk. Wow. Only 11:45 AM and it was already in the mid-80s. North Carolina, why do you hate me so?

I dropped off Jessie's trash in the dumpster and started across the parking lot to our building when I noticed Angela's car was in her space. She traveled so much for work and it seemed like she spent more time away from home than she did at home. We always tried to spend time together when she was in town but I was also aware that Ben definitely wanted some alone time with his girl.

Jessie and I walked up the stairs and instead of stopping at our door, she continued onto Angela's as if she knew our friend was back. I followed Jessie to Ange's door and rang the bell. Laurie barked like a mad dog and Ben answered the door.

"Hey Bells. Ange! Bella's here! Come on in sweetie." He hugged me and then bent down to scoop Jessie up in a big hug. She returned his greeting with enthusiastic wiggling and kisses.

He put her down and she immediately ran to Laurie who was now dancing around under foot and licking my shoes. I bent down to give her a smooch and Angela came out of the bedroom at the end of the hall. I stood up and smiled at one of my best friends.

"Hey chica!" she said as she hugged me tightly. "I've missed you!"

"Angie. I've missed you too, you have no idea. When are you going to get transferred to a job that actually requires you to spend time _in_ the state?"

"You know she's just trying to get away from me," Ben said with a smile on his face as he came up behind Angela and wrapped his arms around her waist. He buried his face in her hair and she tilted her head to allow him access to her neck. He kissed her neck softly and then rested his chin on her shoulder.

They both stood there looking at me with goofy lovesick grins on their faces and I couldn't help but roll my eyes and smile.

"And on that note...I think Jessie and I will make ourselves scarce," I said as I fidgeted with Jessie's leash.

"Hey! I was just telling Ben that we should go out tonight. You and Rose in? She can bring Emmett, of course."

"Yeah, I can swing that. I've got some work stuff to do, but it should only take the afternoon. What time did you want to leave?"

I _needed_ to backup my hard drive.

"We can meet over here at 10:30 and Ben said he would drive for us so we can drink!" She tightened her hold on his arms that were still around her waist.

"Ok, that works for me. I don't know about Rose though. I'll have to ask her."

Someone pounded three times on the front door. The dogs ran to the door and started barking in the most menacing way that two tiny dogs can bark. We all stiffened and Ben let go of Angela and walked to the door.

"Let me in you bitches," Rose said from outside.

We all breathed a sigh of relief and started to chuckle as Ben opened the door for Rose.

"Welcome back. How long are you staying for this time, tramp?" Rosalie was such a sweet talker.

"Ha! Hey Rosie Lee. I'm here til Wednesday. Then it's off to Atlanta for a conference and then I'll be back Saturday and Sunday." She walked behind Ben and mimicked his earlier posture by wrapping her hands around his waist and locking her fingers together. "We're going out tonight. Are you and Emmett going to come?"

"You two," she pointed at Ben and Angela, "You make me want to vomit. Just a little." My mouth gaped open and I stared at Rosalie in shock. She was in rare form today. "Yeah, I'm down. I'll tell Emmett. Later."

She turned around and strolled out, lightly slamming the door behind her as she went. Ten seconds later, I heard the door to our house slam as well. I looked up at Ben and Angela and I knew my cheeks were pink. They just rolled their eyes and smiled.

I hugged them and told them I was heading out. I didn't bother leashing Jessie since we were fifteen feet from our front door.

The rest of the day was spent backing up my laptop, writing, taking a nap, and eating dinner. If I was going to be a drunk, dancing fool tonight, rest was necessary.

**

"Rosalie, come _on_! Ange and Ben have been sitting in the car for ten minutes! Emmett's going to wonder if we're standing him up!"

She came sauntering out of her bedroom. "No, he won't. He lives further out than we do. If anything, we'll get there at the same time now."

My eyes widened. She was wearing a short, red, shiny flapper dress and four-inch, gold, fuck-me heels. I had on darkwash jeans and a teal, cap-sleeve shirt with two-inch, dark teal strappy sandals. Next to her, I looked like the Old Maid from a game of Go Fish. No man in his right mind would even glance at me with Rose in the room.

I started getting that sinking feeling that sometimes happens when you go out with your girlfriends and realize you're the "fat one." Rosalie and Ange were both so slender and I was so not.

I'll just hold out hope that the club is dark enough that no one will notice that from the side, my boobs and ass occupy their own zip code.

Rosalie stood in front of me tapping her foot.

I sighed.

"Finally," I said, "Let's go Princess."

**

I felt a little bit awkward in the car on the ride over to the Martini Bar. I had just spent 45 minutes getting ready and feeling great about myself and then had it go right out the window at the mere sight of Rose. I hated feeling this way because I knew that if I were that gorgeous, I would most likely flaunt it too. Also because I knew that Rosalie loved me just the way I was. She wasn't the type for false friendships and niceties. She said what she meant and she meant what she said and everyone be damned.

"You know, Bells, you really just need to get some."

Case in point.

"Rosalie," I sighed, "I get some when I feel like it. I just haven't felt like it lately." That was partially true. I had a friend who would come visit periodically and take the edge off. The weird thing was that lately, it wasn't enough. I had started distancing myself from him. Maybe I was growing up. I felt like if there was no emotion behind the action that maybe it wasn't worth the effort. Besides, I didn't go out with my friends to pick up guys. I went out to enjoy their company. When they weren't being assholes, that is.

"Oh really. Then why have I heard buzzing coming from your room late into the night, hmm?"

"Rosalie Caroline Hale! What are you doing listening at the door?" How could she possibly hear the silver bullet unless she was pressed up against the door specifically listening for the telltale buzz.

"Actually, I was just guessing. Thanks for the confirmation." She smirked for a second. Then her face softened and she gave me a little smile and a wink.

I flipped her off and wouldn't look at her for the rest of the car ride. I hated feeling "less than" in front of Ben and Angela. They just seemed like such a perfect match for each other and their happiness was something of which I was extremely envious.

My seething rage was disrupted by a buzzing coming from Rosalie's purse.

"Who's buzzing now?" I said laced with sarcasm.

"Yeah. You're right, Bella. You don't need to get laid. At all." Rosalie rolled her eyes.

She opened her purse and got her cell phone. She flipped it open and read the text that she had received.

"Jazz and Alice are coming."

Ah yes. Three swizzle sticks and a chunky dunk. It was going to be a stellar evening.

I'd only met Alice Cullen a few times. She seems nice enough. Sometimes she seems overtly nice, as if she's trying too hard to get everyone to like her. I guess when you are trying to win over your boyfriend's sister, and that sister is Rosalie, you've got to work for it.

As much as I don't want to admit it, I think I resent Alice a little bit. She's barely 5' tall with short black hair barely down to her jaw. She is a teensy waif of a girl. Aside from the obvious physical differences, she also spends entirely too much time with Jasper.

My feelings for him are far from romantic. I love him like a brother. I'm also very protective of our relationship, just as I am of Rosalie and mine. I've never had siblings and they are the closest things I've got to that kinship. I just don't want to see it degrade.

I continued to stare out the car window until we were closing in on our destination.

Ben pulled up to the curb in front of the Martini Bar and let us out. He drove off to park the car in the public lot over by the bank. Angela wanted to stay outside and wait for him but Rosalie had other plans. She sauntered up to the bouncer who was taking IDs and whispered something in his ear. He blushed and smirked and let us in without having to pay the cover. Poor Ben.

Rosalie pushed her way up to the bar and immediately ordered us all a shot and a drink, Ben included. A Lemon Drop and an Appletini later, Ben, Angela, and Rosalie were all scoping out guys for me from our perch at the side of the bar. I wasn't quite drunk enough for that yet. I told everyone that I'd get the next round and turned around to lean on the bar. I found if I pushed my chest up just a little so that it rested on top of the bar, I would get my shots and drinks much faster and sometimes at a discount.

In the corner across from us was a group of guys that looked about college age or a little bit older. Rosalie pointed out the blonde to me and then proceeded to wave at them. I know she meant well, but honestly, did she think they would want to have anything to do with me after seeing her? I knew better.

I downed my second shot and grabbed my drink and led Angela out to the dance floor. I was at least tipsy now and could handle a little dancing. A few random hiphop songs later and I heard the opening notes to Kings of Leon's Revelry. Not exactly typical club music but one of my favorite songs of theirs. Angela and I didn't quite know how to dance to it, though, so we started this ethereal swaying and twirling that had us both rolling with laughter.

A few seconds later, I felt a hand on each hip. I stopped moving for a second and glanced at Ange and she gave me the thumbs up sign so I put my hands on his to hold them to my hips and I started dancing back into him. He was a little stiff at first but as we danced, he loosened up and molded himself to my body and he put his head down nuzzling into my hair on the side of my face.

I ground my ass into him slightly and removed one of my hands from his to reach back and caress the back of his head. This caused him to move in even closer to me and I felt a hot, open-mouthed kiss on my neck through my hair. I involuntarily groaned and reflexively pushed back against him. He moved his hands up and down my sides and rubbed my hips gently. I realized simultaneously that he was hard and I was wet.

I heard someone yell my name. All of a sudden I was picked up and twirled in the air by a massive beast. Emmett.

"How's my Bells?!" Emmett's loud voice boomed over the minute silence in between songs.

"Jesus, Emmett! You scared the shit out of me! Can you please put me down now?"

He gave me one more twirl and a kiss on the cheek and placed me on the floor not far from where I was originally, but this time facing my dance partner. I was floored. He was at least 6'2" and had a track star build. Long, thin muscles without any real bulk. A chiseled jaw line and about a day's worth of scruff on his face. His eyes were a vibrant green that followed mine towards Emmett and then back to each others'. His hair was a coppery brown with flecks of gold highlighted by the flashing lights of the club. He was beautiful.

He tentatively looked at Emmett and I standing there, obviously at ease with our close proximity.

Rose came up from behind me and snaked her arms around Em's waist and pressed her finger to his nose and wiggled it as she kissed him on the cheek.

"Hey baby bear. My brother's here already. Want to meet his girlfriend?"

"Sure babe, point me in the right direction."

Jasper and Alice were already walking over to where we were standing and Emmett put his hand out to shake Jasper's. I could see Jasper's lips moving to introduce Alice and Emmett but I couldn't hear anything. I wondered if it was due to the loud music in the club or the strange humming I felt radiating in my head. It was like an electrical storm in my mind.

"Rosalie, Emmett, Bella – this is my brother, Edward." Alice walked over to my dance partner and put his arm around his back to introduce him.

Alice Cullen's brother. Edward Cullen.

Edward, Edward Cullen.

He said I was lovely.

Emmett took two short strides over to Edward and extended his hand. Edward flinched when he shook Emmett's large hand but his eyes kept glancing over to catch mine.

"Hey man, what's shakin?" Emmett boomed.

"Not much," Edward answered.

"Hi Edward," Rosalie said nonchalantly.

"Hello."

"Hi," was all I could muster. Classy, Bella. Way to go.

"Wow, Bella. Emmett must have scared the daylights out of you. Are you alive in there?" Jasper came to stand by me and dramatically pressed the back of his hand to my forehead as if to check for a fever.

I had to normalize so I wouldn't embarass myself any further.

"I am now! You saved me!" I went Scarlet O'Hara on that one.

I hugged Jasper hard and he just laughed and kissed the top of my head.

Emmett looked sheepish like he felt bad for violating my personal space. "Aww, come on. You know I love my little Belly."

Oh no he didn't.

In a flash I was at Emmett's side and I kicked him square in the shin as hard as I could. He _knew_ I hated that nickname. I was _so_ self-conscious about the little pooch on my stomach.

"SHIT! Bella! I'm sorry, ok?!"

"Better be sorry..._Emmy_." I grinned widely at him.

Emmett scowled and rubbed his shin til the pain subsided. "Ok, we're even." That's what he thought.

"For now," I gave him the most devious eye waggle I could muster.

I noticed that Angela had come up beside me and she lightly grabbed my elbow. She whispered in my ear, "Can I talk to you for a sec?"

I nodded and she led me off to the corner that was previously occupied by the blonde hottie and his friends.

"Ok. What the hell just happened back there? What was up with the vicious staring contest between you and Alice's brother? I thought you were dancing together."

"He's Alice's brother! Edward Cullen!"

"Oh, Alice's last name is Cullen? I didn't know..."

"Angela, _focus please._ The AppleCare guy – Mr. Put Up With My Verbal Diarrhea on the phone guy. The one I emailed you about."

Realization dawned.

"Oh. Oh!! Are you sure? Edward and Cullen seem like common names."

"I actually think I recognize his voice. I'm sure it's him."

"So go introduce yourself."

"Ange, I can't. Ten minutes ago, I had his lips on my neck and my ass on his crotch."

I glanced over as I said it and noticed that Edward and Alice were conspiring across the room. His eyes met mine and I shifted my gaze back to Angela.

"Yes and you both looked like you were enjoying it, so what's the problem?"

"I don't know. Awkward, maybe? You think I should?"

"Yes. Be casual. Just go over and thank him for helping you with your computer. Don't be 'that girl' on him and I think you'll be fine."

"Ok. I can do that. I think."

I steeled myself and started to walk over toward Edward.

**

A/N: Muahahahaha. I'm an evil bitch.

Review for hot open-mouthed kisses from Edward.


	6. Chapter 5 I Don't Wanna Know

A/N: Hmm....don't hate the Nerdward. He is confused. His penis is less confused.

Disclaimer: I own nothing related to Twilight. Well, that's not true. I own an awesome Forks keychain that a friend sent me from her trip to WA...ooh and New Moon conversation hearts ;o)

_**_

_"Yes. Be casual. Just go over and thank him for helping you with your computer. Don't be 'that girl' on him and I think you'll be fine."_

_"Ok. I can do that. I think."_

_I steeled myself and started to walk over toward Edward._

Chapter 5 – I Don't Wanna Know

EPOV

The night had taken an interesting turn. Just a few hours ago, Alice and Jasper were over at my place getting tipsy and stuffing their faces so they'd be able to handle the insane amounts of alcohol they planned on drinking tonight. I honestly thought it was going to be a pretty boring evening when it started. I guess I was wrong.

Jazz and Alice were at the bar waiting for his sister and getting their first round. I excused myself to go to the men's room. I was halfway across the floor when I saw this girl and her friend dancing themselves right into me. The one closest to me had her back turned and if I didn't stop her, she was going to step on my feet. She was a big girl so I had a feeling that that would be a little uncomfortable.

I reached out right as she backed up towards me and placed my hands on her hips to stop her and as I was leaning down to say "excuse me", she placed her hands on mine and began swaying again to the music. I stiffened up right away and felt extremely uncomfortable. This poor girl obviously thought I wanted to dance with her and now I was trapped.

She pushed backed into me and rubbed her ass on my cock. I instinctively curled forward at the contact. How do girls always know how to do that in such a way that we are utterly incapacitated?

It felt so good.

I was getting hard and she continued to rub and grind into me. At this rate, I'd cum in my pants in a matter of minutes. I curved forward into her back and I felt her hand come up off of mine and weave its way into the hair on the back of my head. She lightly scratched my scalp and I inhaled sharply with a small groan. As I took in the air, I could smell the scent of her hair. It smelled like vanilla and strawberries and I couldn't help but to push my face in closer to inhale as much as I could.

The girl alternated her hips backward onto my straining bulge in a crescent-moon pattern from left to right – right to left – left to right, back and forth across the fly of my jeans until I was sure I was going to orgasm. My face was so close to her neck that my nose was touching it through her hair. I couldn't help but to open my mouth and place a hot, wet kiss right on her smooth neck. She groaned slightly and it felt like my body was on fire.

In the blink of an eye, she was out of my arms and in someone else's.

This ape of a man had stolen my dance partner and was now twirling her in the air as she screamed with a screwed up smirk on her face.

Her face.

She was beautiful for a chubby girl. Her skin was flawless and luminescent in the lighting of the bar. She had heavy brown hair that reminded me of the chestnuts my mom and dad roasted at Christmas. Her lips were the color of cranberries. Her wide eyes were a deep, chocolate brown and they fell on mine when the brute finally put her down. They were obviously very familiar with each other. I kept looking from him to her almost expecting an explanation to appear over their heads like a Pop-Up Video.

A second later, a bombshell blonde appeared at King Kong's side and they looked awfully cosy. They stood there talking, but I could barely hear a word they were saying. It felt like electricity crackling in my ears. I knew going to these clubs was a bad idea. I'd lose my hearing before I reached thirty.

Before I knew it, Jasper and Alice were standing there and I was being introduced to Jasper's twin sister Rosalie, her boyfriend Emmett, and my dance partner, Bella.

Bella.

I'd heard that name a lot lately.

After we were introduced, I started hearing a little bit better and the big guy, Emmett, was teasing my dance partner. Before I knew it, she was kicking him in the shin. This Bella was feisty just like phone Bella was. It couldn't be the same girl though. That would be freaky.

Then she spoke a full sentence. Maybe this was the same girl. Her voice sounded eerily similar to the girl on the phone with the screwy laptop. Is this the woman that had come looking for me at work?

Before any of this could fully register, the friend that Bella was dancing with before I had tried to move around them came and grabbed her elbow. She lead Bella off the dance floor and into a corner and they looked like they were having a heated conversation.

I took the opportunity to gather my thoughts and walked over to Alice.

"Hey, got a minute?"

"Sure, Edward. What's up?" she said in a high, sing-song voice that she reserved for the times when she knew a secret.

"So, Rosalie is Jazz's sister and Emmett's her boyfriend. What are their last names?" I figured if I started there, then when I asked about Bella, it wouldn't seem so out of place.

"Why don't you ask me about Bella? She's the one you're interested in learning about, isn't she?"

How did she _do_ that?

I'd never get over my sister's knack for reading me like an open book. Actually, I'd never get over my sister being able to read damn near every situation like an open book.

"I wanted to know about all of them since we just met."

"Her name is Isabella Swan. I'm not a fool, Edward. The others may not have noticed, but I saw you dancing with her."

"Yes well," I sighed, "that was before I knew who she was."

Damnit. It _was_ Bella, Bella Swan.

I didn't know if I should be happy that I was meeting the lovely girl from the phone call or if I should be disappointed at her appearance. She was definitely beautiful for a big girl. No doubting that. But she was not my usual type. I generally went for tall, slender, blonde. Rosalie. I tended to be interested in women like Rosalie. Of course, being a bit of a nerd myself, women like Rosalie were seldom ever interested in guys like me.

From what Jasper had told me of his sister, she was completely head over heels for Godzilla. She also didn't seem as warm as the girls I'd dated in the past. A bit of an Ice Queen where my sister was concerned.

"You know her." It was a statement.

"Yes. She called into work last night and I helped her with her computer."

"So what is with the angst, oh brother of mine?" She slurred slightly and jabbed me in the chest with her pointer finger.

"Nothing. It was just a dance. No big deal." Just then, I glanced over to where Bella and her friend were talking and her eyes met mine for an instant. She broke the contact and continued her conversation.

"Oh Edward, you're such a drama king." She was starting to feel the effects of the alcohol.

Alice turned away from me as Jasper sidled up next to her and put his drunk arm around her drunk waist and gave her a big, sloppy, drunk kiss.

I couldn't deny that I felt a spark while dancing with Bella. The dance floor had seemed empty as if it was just the two of us with the beat of the music to guide our movements. Her smell was intoxicating. No wonder I was hard when we were dancing.

I guess anything rubbing up against my dick would do that to me, though.

I glanced up and suddenly she was standing right in front of me.

I was alright with Alice knowing the small, but embarassing, history of my acquaintance with Bella Swan. I did not want Jasper to know, though. To him, she was the female equivalent of me. A best friend. I didn't want to fuck with that.

He couldn't know that a little while ago, my lips had been pressed tightly to her neck and my cock was hard as it dug into the flesh of her very round behind.

He also couldn't know that I was slightly put off with the size of her body. He loved his friend and would protect her from anything that might hurt her. Besides, there was nothing to tell, really. It was just a dance.

"Edward, Edward Cullen. I'm Bella, Bella Swan." She smiled warmly at me to introduce herself again more thoroughly. She held out her hand to shake mine.

I felt my eyes go wide as I silently plead with her not to "out me" in front of Jasper. Alice already knew, but Bella couldn't have known that.

I tentatively smiled and took her small hand in mine to shake my hello.

Voltage. Crackling. Surging.

The palm of my hand burned with the contact. I felt each one of her fingers as they wrapped around my hand and was sure they'd leave marks on the flesh.

Was it this woman that made me react this way? It _had_ been a long time since I'd been intimate with a woman and maybe the pent up sexual frustration was starting to take a toll on me.

"Very nice to meet you." I let go of her hand and her smile dropped infinitesimally.

I turned my attention to Jasper so he would be ignorant to my reaction to Bella.

"So Jasper, how's this sister of mine been lately? I never see her anymore unless she's dragging me out to some club she needs a DD for."

Jasper and I talked for a few minutes and I noticed that Bella had wandered away from our little group. She was on the dance floor with Rosalie and Emmett while Alice, Jasper, and I were still near the bar. Alice started bouncing around and I knew she was itching to be out there with them. I wish I knew where she got all this energy from. I wonder if you were to do a DNA test on Alice, if all you'd get is RedBull in the vial.

Alice started dragging Jasper out to the dance floor and I could either follow or be left odd man out at the bar. I followed.

I am not much of a dancer, per se, so I did the white boy shuffle and tried to bullshit with my sister while she was trying to bump her shit with Jasper. I noticed Rosalie and Bella laughing and hugging each other as they danced. Baby Huey just smiled down at them and then his eyes caught mine. That fucker winked at me.

What the hell? Did he think that I would be jealous? Ok, so I was a bit. Women dancing with each other is always a turn-on. That bastard.

He got up behind his icy princess and put his hands on her waist. Instinctively, she pushed back into him and he took one hand off of her to put it on Bella. They were now sandwiched, Rosalie in the middle. Back to front to back to front.

Holy shit.

Rosalie was spanking Bella halfway between her butt and her hip.

Straight girls don't play fair.

My pants were starting to strain and as I adjusted myself, the lucky linebacker looked over at me and started laughing. I nodded my head at him and lifted my one beer of the night as if to concede his apparent victory, but my face was held in the same scowl it had been for the past few minutes.

A few hours later, it was plain to see that everyone in our little crew was pretty hammered, aside from Ben and I. Alice's face was plastered to Jasper's and I couldn't quite tell where her lips ended and his began. Gross.

Bella had bounced back and forth between Sasquatch and his woman, Angela and Ben, and even a few dances with Jasper when Alice could pull herself away from her loverman. She had stayed far, far away from me. I felt a twinge of guilt for being so brief with her before and wondered if she had written me off as an asshole before we even really officially met.

It was nearing the end of the night, as was evident by the sudden onset of the final two slow songs of the evening. I glanced down at my watch. Yep. Ten of two.

When I looked back up, the intro to Snow Patrol's version of Run began to play and I watched as our group paired off leaving Bella and I staring at each other from across the little dance floor. She immediately looked uncomfortable and I felt guilty again. She glanced up at me and gave me a cursory half-smile as she moved to walk past me and off the dance floor.

I hooked my hand in the crook of her elbow and felt a charge. I looked down at where our skin was touching and noticed she was doing the same. What _is_ this?

"Guess it's you and me?" I leaned down to her ear so I could be certain that she would hear me.

She gave a slight shudder and stepped back a bit. Was she afraid of me? Way to go, Cullen.

I slid my hand down to take hers, led her back toward our group on the floor, and turned to face her. I used my hand to put hers on my shoulder and she naturally put her other hand on my other shoulder. My hands went to her hips for the second time this evening.

Once again, I leaned in to speak to her.

"Thanks for not 'outing' us. I mean, Alice has told me that you and Jasper are close. I just thought it would be awkward for him to know that we were each aware of who the other one was. Jasper and I are best friends, but it's a bit awkward for me now that he's dating my sister."

"It's ok. I wasn't sure if anyone saw us dancing besides Angela and I thought it might have been uncomfortable."

"Yeah, although I think the big guy might have."

"Emmett's got tunnel-vision. If he noticed, I'm sure he would have said something."

I don't think Bella was giving Fezzik over there enough credit. The looks he was throwing my way made me seriously doubt how oblivious he was.

This time, Bella leaned into me to speak. Her lips grazed my ear as she did and I felt myself harden, yet again.

"So, thanks again for helping with my computer. You should be proud to know that I backed everything up today."

"You're welcome. I got word from the store that you stopped by today but I am not in on weekends."

"Yeah, about her. Why didn't she know your name? She knew you as Mr. Cullen."

"Ah, well, I am working as the Assistant Manager and I only get on the phones when there are high call volumes."

"Is it something that you enjoy?" she looked sheepish as if she thought that question might be overstepping a boundary.

"Well, it's a job and it pays the bills for now. What about you?" I was diverting that one for the time being.

"Oh yes, I love my job!"

Bella went on to tell me about being what amounted to a food critic. She was paid to go out to eat at new restaurants and hotels and then write about it. Hot shit.

The iconic melody of Billy Joel's Piano Man swirled around the room.

We were barely dancing now. Just holding onto each other and talking animatedly about our favorite restaurants in the Triangle. We were both wild about Volterra and there was a new restaurant she said was opening in a few weeks that she was so excited about, Forks and Spoons. Ironically enough, it was a Japanese themed restaurant and no silverware was going to be used. Chopsticks and bare hands, only. Bella and her boss were going to be among the first patrons when it opened and I found myself getting jealous.

Before I knew it, the lights were brightening on the dance floor and Piano Man was almost over. I glanced around the room and the couples were clinging to one another, dreading the light like they were Gremlins.

Rosalie motioned us all over to where she and Foghorn Leghorn were standing and extended an invitation to go back to their apartment to hang out and sober up for a while. Ben and Angela decided that they really just wanted to go home, so they declined. Alice and Jasper were up for it which meant I had to be up for it too, seeing as I was their designated driver. When Mufasa said that he would drive Rosalie and Bella, I was a bit nervous that he had been drinking but he assured me that he loved his girls far too much to put them in danger. And then he winked at me. I almost started to respect him and then the fucker winked at me. Again.

I'd have to tell Bella that I think he definitely saw our little mini-show earlier.

It was a few minutes after 2 am and we were in the car on the way to Rosalie's apartment. I didn't realize that it was also Bella's apartment, but Jasper filled me in. Apparently the girls' friendship went back as far as Jasper and Bella's, almost to the day. I had a hard time believing that two such opposite girls could get along that well. Rosalie was a forceful bombshell and Bella was a bit more shy and didn't seem to place much stock in getting made up like the other girls in the bar had, not that she really needed to. Well, I guess opposites attract in friendships as well.

We pulled into the parking lot of the condo building behind Chewy and the girls. Rosalie was stumbling and grabbing onto him for support and Bella was leading everyone up the stairs with her keys in her hand. As soon as we were all inside, this little dog came running out of what I presumed to be a bedroom and attacked Bella. She bent down and lifted her up and kissed her on the snoot and began to coo to her as if she was a baby. Bella excused herself and went to take the dog out.

The two couples were already sickeningly attached to each other. Bob's Big Boy and Rosalie went into her bedroom and Jasper and Alice went outside on the back deck after helping themselves to a few beers from the fridge. I stood there in disbelief and then resignation. I guess I was the odd man out yet again.

I went to the fridge to get myself a beer.

**

BPOV

Just as I reached the bottom of the steps and set Jessie down to go to the bathroom, I heard a door lightly close from the second story landing. I glanced back to see Angela bringing Laurie down the steps. Laurie squirmed to get away from Angela's hands and she ran to meet Jessie on the grass out front of our building.

"Hey lady. Interesting evening, no?" She came over to me and nudged me with her elbow.

"Why, whatever do you mean?"

"Oh, please. Not only did I see the original encounter on the dance floor, but I saw the end of the night dances too. I'm not blind, you know."

"Yeah well, congratulations. You saw a single guy dance with the only single girl in the group he was with out of pity."

"Bella. Why do you do that?"

"Do what?" I huffed at her indignantly.

"That. Negate yourself."

"Ugh. Ange. I don't know. He's really nice and nerdalicious of course, but it's not like there was a repeat performance of the first dance. It's not like it's the first time I've danced with a guy who gets swept up in the intensity of the club atmosphere. It doesn't mean anything. Hell, I've danced just as intimately with Rosalie and you and Emmett...sometimes at the same time."

I gave her the nudge this time.

We trudged back up the stairs when we realized that both dogs had already ran up to the second floor and were peering at us over the top step waiting to go home.

I said goodnight to Angela and brought Jessie inside.

The apartment was pretty dim and I saw a faint light peeking out from under Rose's bedroom door with a heavy beated song muffled in the background. Those crazy kids. I'd be surprised if they could even get the job done considering how gone Rosalie was when we got home.

I saw two shadows on the deck, one much shorter than the other. I assumed that Jasper and Alice had also paired off to be alone. Seemed that their shadows were attached at the lips.

Jessie ran around the corner into the living room and I followed her to see what she was running to.

I rounded the corner to see the bronze-haired computer god sitting on my couch smiling at me.

**

Oooooooh....it's gettin good y'all!!!!!

Please review!! Reviews are better than Edward's hands on your hips while electricity sparks from his fingertips!!

Ok, not really. But still. I need the lovin.


	7. Chapter 6 First Comes Heavy Breathing

**A/N: *Sigh* Mmm....bronze-haired computer god. Num yummy.**

**Big thanks to my awesome beta, JaspersBrand!**

**More big thanks to all the fantastic readers and REVIEWERS!! *nudge nudge, wink wink***

**Disclaimer: I own nothing Twilight. 'Cept the spontaneous ovulation that occurs whenever I see pics of Robward.**

**

_I said goodnight to Angela and brought Jessie inside. _

_The apartment was pretty dim and I saw a faint light peeking out from under Rose's bedroom door with a heavy beated song muffled in the background. Those crazy kids. I'd be surprised if they could even get the job done considering how gone Rosalie was when we got home._

_I saw two shadows on the deck, one much shorter than the other. I assumed that Jasper and Alice had also paired off to be alone. Seemed that their shadows were attached at the lips._

_Jessie ran around the corner into the living room and I followed her to see what she was running to._

_I rounded the corner to see the bronze-haired computer god sitting on my couch smiling at me._

**

**Chapter 6 – First Comes Heavy Breathing**

Jessie ran up to the couch and jumped up. She nuzzled her way into Edward's lap and he moved his beer from one hand to the other in order to pet her more comfortably. She snuggled her head into his hip, causing Edward to laugh, telling her she was a good girl.

I stood there in awe. Jessie had been deathly afraid of men ever since the robbery. She still loved Ben and Jasper but she gave pause the first time she saw Emmett after it had happened. That made me think that whoever it was that robbed the place was a larger man who intimidated her.

"Wow. I can't believe she likes you." I said, awkwardly, before I'd realized how bad it sounded. I cupped my hand over my mouth.

He looked up at me with an inquisitive look on his face.

"Ha. Am I that bad?"

"No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. It's just that we were robbed last year and she has been afraid of most new men ever since."

He looked pensive for a minute.

"Oh. Are there a lot of new men around here?" His voice was laced with snark and a small smile played on his lips.

I stuttered, "...No, no, what I meant was...I just meant when we take walks along the trails and stuff." Son of a bitch, I was blushing.

"Just joshin ya. That really sucks about the break-in though. Were you and Rosalie home?"

I sat down next to him and started to pet Jessie while she was still in his lap. I could secretly cop a feel and feign innocence if I wanted. Sweet.

"No, we were both at work but Jessie was home. When I got back, I found her barricaded in the bathroom. She had gone to the bathroom everywhere. I can't even imagine how scared she must have been. It breaks my heart a little bit."

"I'm sorry. She seems to be ok with me though?"

"Yeah, I really am surprised. Not because it's you. Just, in general." I smiled at him and saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I looked up to see a glimpse of Jasper and Alice making out hardcore on the deck.

His gaze followed mine.

"Well...they certainly look like they're enjoying themselves," he said with a chuckle.

I couldn't help myself. I broke out into a fit of giggles. I felt like such a voyeur watching them but Jasper was a good looking man and it was hard to look away. But then I looked at Edward and stopped laughing.

It was dark in the room aside from the faint glow of the light on the back deck but I could see that he was staring at me.

"Did you have a good time tonight, Bella?" His eyes were as black as coal. He leaned his head imperceptibly closer to mine.

My name falling from his lips felt like the most intense erotica being read to me. I felt my cheeks get hot and I knew that I was blushing just remembering our dance and the feeling of him pressed up against me. The room felt like it was getting warmer with every passing second.

"Yes, Edward. It was a very good night." I followed his lead and leaned in slightly.

He opened his eyes a little bit wider in silent question. I nodded.

My eyes stayed on his as we slowly came towards each other. He glanced down at my lips for a second and back to my eyes.

Edward closed the distance and I felt the heat of his lips on mine. He seemed hesitant at first. His kiss was tentative but I was having none of that. I parted my lips and touched my tongue to his top lip, licking my way inside his mouth. He groaned as his hand came around the back of my head to hold my lips to his. We both opened our mouths and devoured each other.

I felt something shift on the couch and wondered if he was going to lay me down so I could feel his delicious hardness again.

Then there was another tongue on my face and I realized that Jessie was up on her hind legs, kissing our faces and wagging her tail to get our attention. She was clearly jealous that Mommy was getting some and she wasn't. Little cockblocking furball.

Edward gave a little laugh and started petting her again. Oh hell no. That little girl was going in her crate and this big girl was gonna get some tongue.

"I'll be right back. I'm just going to go put her in her crate."

I lifted her out of Edward's lap. Unfortunately, no feel was copped.

We walked around the corner out of the living room and into my bedroom. Jessie's crate was in the far corner across from the door. There was no light except for the streetlight floating in through the half-closed blinds, which cast just enough glow to make it easy to get across the room without a broken toe.

I let Jessie out of my arms and she ran into her personal little goody box. She grabbed one of her many stuffed animals, a porcupine, and nestled into the blankie that was balled up on the bottom. I latched the door.

I turned around to see a tall shadow in my bedroom doorway. My heart almost jumped out of my chest and I squinted to see his face. His intense, pale, beautiful face. I watched him take a deep breath and he crossed the room taking my face in his hands. He crashed his lips to mine and I whimpered as my hands flung around his neck.

Oh yes, you velvet-tongued adonis. How do you do what you do so well?!

The patio door slammed shut and we froze for a split second before ripping apart from each other.

Mother fucking cockblockers! Why can everybody get theirs except for the girl who hasn't gotten busy in over 4 months? So fucking unfair.

"Bells?"

Jasper. You hillbilly bastard.

I pushed past Edward and walked into the living room with him following a few feet behind me.

Jasper stood a few feet from the patio door with a knowing scowl on his face. Alice hid behind him with a girly grin on hers.

"Right here, guys. Was just putting Jessie in her crate for the night."

"It's after 3...Edward, are you ready to go?" Jasper's tone was cold.

"Yeah, sure. We can head out." Edward turned to me. "Thanks for the dances, Bella. Have a good night."

That was a little too cordial for a man who just had his hands in my hair and his tongue down my throat.

"You're welcome. Goodnight, Edward."

I hugged Jasper and walked everyone to the door. After the locks were latched and the alarm system was armed, I went into my room and shut the door. Jessie was asleep in her crate but I opened the door anyway in case she wanted to snuggle later.

A cool shower was just what I needed to bring me down from the tongue-induced frenzy I had been exposed to just a short while ago. I got out of the shower and dried off. My pajamas were no frills. Cotton shorts and an old, ratty Bon Jovi t-shirt. I never really bought any lingerie. For one thing, I rarely had a man around long enough to enjoy it. For another, finding everyday clothes to fit comfortably was hard enough without adding lace and garters into the mix.

I started to think back on the events of our night out. My behavior was far from ladylike but I couldn't see the harm in having a little fun. Edward was beautiful, so that helped, of course. It was something more though. Something I couldn't quite put my finger on. There was a feeling, an intensity that I couldn't explain. My body hummed from the mere presence of the man, and when he touched me, it was like all my synapses were firing at once. Overstimulated nerve endings in the best possible way.

I lay down in the bed and shut the overhead light off after putting the bedside lamp on.

I could forgive Jasper for unknowingly halting the impending action in my bedroom. Anyway, it's not like Edward was shoplifting the pootie or anything. I would have been a more than willing participant. What kills me is that my own sweet, little, angel of a pup would stick her tongue in where it didn't belong: Edward's mouth.

Ok, Bella. Now you're envious of your dog. Time for bed.

For a split second, I thought about reaching into my nightstand and putting my shiny silver bullet to good use but for some reason, I decided against it. It was late. I was tired.

But I couldn't get Edward out of my head. I drifted off to sleep with thoughts of fiery kisses on a strobe-lit dance floor.

That was the first night I dreamt of Edward Cullen.

**

EPOV

What the fuck is going on? I don't even know this girl. She's got deadly curves. Should I be throwing the brake on?

The drive to drop Jasper and Alice off was uneventful, if not a little chilly. They were both in the back seat after they fought over being apart from one another for the ten minutes it would take to get us all home. I wanted to vomit. Then I looked in the rearview mirror to see Alice with her head laying on Jasper's shoulder, her eyes closed and his eyes staring me down. If looks could kill, I would have croaked.

I finally got back to my place and was a little more at ease. I didn't need this shit. If Jasper was going to give me a hard time for having some fun with a girl that happened to be his friend, then maybe it wasn't worth it.

Deciding to clear my head and get some sleep, I started a cool shower to bring me down from whatever high I was on. If Jasper was uncomfortable with me hanging out with Bella, I would have to abide by that, wouldn't I?

But the voltage. The surging. I'd never felt that before. My skin was seared and I could still feel the places on my body where her innocent touches had been. They were pure and erotic at the same time, like a white, lace nightie on a wedding night. A perfect contradiction of the wanton angel she seemed to be.

I watched her shyly walk away from me when the slow music started on the dance floor, when a mere blip in time earlier, she had her hands on mine and was pushing back into me with a mischievous sensuality that rivaled old Hollywood starlets.

I couldn't let her walk away. The feeling of her body against mine was something I could not let go of that easily. It was obvious that my body was having a reaction that my head wasn't in on as I looked down at my now fully erect penis interrupting the stream of cool shower water.

Trying my best to ignore it, I finished my shower and toweled off. I threw on some shorts and hopped into bed. The tent I was erecting stayed with me until I finally fell asleep.

The next morning, I decided to get dressed and go get brunch at Elmo's diner. They made Pumpkin Pancakes with a cinnamon maple syrup that was sinful. If you closed your eyes, you would swear you were eating Pumpkin Pie on Thanksgiving.

On the drive back, I got a phone call from my darling sister. Apparently Emmett had tickets to a Durham Bull's baseball game and Jasper wanted to know if I wanted to go with them later that night.

Was he that angry with me that he couldn't call and ask me himself? _ That can't be good_.

I agreed and told Alice that I'd be at their place later. I'd have to make sure that I got there early so we would be able to get a good parking spot. The last thing I wanted to do is piss off Jazz on guy's night. There'd be no Alice to buffer the wrath.

I got home and looked forward to spending a lazy Sunday afternoon watching a movie or two and maybe taking another nap before the game. During the week, I hated to nap because then I had such a hard time sleeping at night but on the weekends, all bets were off. Naps got me through my meager but tiring social life.

Changing into some comfortable lounging clothes, I decided to watch 300 on HBO OnDemand. I grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch and got settled in. The dialogue was ridiculous at times, but there was a slow-motion sex scene that would put any man in the mood. For a split second, I imagined it was Bella and I on that bed, her back arching her full breasts out on display as she rode me. As I started to think more about Bella and her curves, I felt myself growing harder under the blanket. One of the benefits of living alone is that I was free to take advantage of this interesting turn of events.

I reached under the blanket and into my shorts, feeling the hot, silky hardness that was straining to be released. I pumped it once and felt myself suck in a breath as I imagined Bella's big, round ass pressed into my groin. I groaned as I pumped my cock again and was overcome with the force of my orgasm.

Seriously? When did I become a two-pump chump? Especially in my own damn hand. Maybe I was sick. Whenever I get sick, I seem to go very quickly, much to the dismay of anyone I may be with at the time.

I cleaned up a bit and changed my shorts. The blanket went in the washer just in case. I lay back down on the couch facing away from the tv and decided to take a nap. If I was getting sick, a nap would help knock it right out of me.

**

BPOV

Light streaming in through the window, warms my face. I open my eyes and glance at the clock on my dresser, 9:00am. I turn away from the sunbeam and snuggle further into the pillow.

A loud noise in the other room. Is that Rose? Rose would never be up this early on a Sunday, especially after staying up so late.

So, who is in my house?

I got out of bed and walked to the door. I looked for Jessie and realized that she was not in the room with me. A small tremor of fear went through my body. Where was my little girl? Was there a stranger in my house?

I reached out my hand to open the door. I pulled it open forcefully and jumped out into the small hallway like I was in Mission Impossible. At least I didn't make my hands into a gun because I saw Emmett in my kitchen with pots and pans all around him. He was making breakfast.

I must have forgotten that he stayed over since he and Rose disappeared in her room as soon as we got back here after the bar. Wiggling all around his feet was Jessie.

"Mornin, Bells! I didn't think you'd be up so early."

"Yes well, I didn't think some idiot would be banging shit around in my kitchen so early."

"Oh. Well, I'm making pancakes with fresh strawberries and syrup, cheesy eggs, bacon, some fresh fruit salad and some OJ. But if you are mad at me, you don't have to have any." He side-eyed me and the corner of his mouth turned up slightly into his signature smirk.

"Shut it and feed me before I slap you."

His bellowing laughter filled the room and I shushed him for fear that he would wake Rose up. A cranky Rose was not something anyone wanted to deal with first thing in the morning.

"No worries, she's in the shower already. Oh and I took Jessie out right before I started cooking."

I didn't know what to react to first. Rose was up and in the shower at 9:00am on a Sunday after partying the night before. Emmett had had the wherewithal to come get my dog from my room and take her for a walk before he started making food. This had to be the Twilight Zone.

"Ok, thank you for taking Jessie out but why the hell is Rose awake??"

"Ha! I know, right? She wants to hit up the mall and get something to wear for tonight."

"What's tonight?"

"Didn't I tell you yesterday?' I shook my head. "We're going to the Bull's game! And there's another ticket with your name on it. They throw the first pitch at 7:30 sharp!"

"Nice. I'm in...wait, why does she need an outfit for a baseball game?"

"She wants you girls to be festive."

I froze. "What do you mean, 'you girls'?"

"You're going shopping too."

"Ugh, Emmett...I do NOT want to go shopping for some silly outfit that I'll most likely wear once and then put in my closet or have to save for Halloween."

I knew the way Rose was about clothes. If she had one occasion to wear it, that was enough. She was unconcerned with repeat performances. That did not work with my mindset or my budget.

"Oh come on, Belly button. You know it makes her happy to window shop. Even if she climbs through the window every time." He winked at me.

I sighed with resignation. I guess we were going shopping. _Yay_.

While Emmett was plating our food, I looked down and saw that Jessie needed her breakfast too. I reached down to grab her food and water dish.

"So what was up with the bump-and-grind on Alice's brother last night?"

I dropped the food dish and what was left came splattering out and onto the floor.

All I heard was a chuckling coming from behind me. I knew my face was red but I didn't care. I spun around and politely flung the remaining contents of the water dish right on his crotch.

He had one plate of food in each hand and an astonished look on his face. He glanced down and then back up at me and tried to speak but all that came out was a sputtering noise.

I felt the surge rise up from deep down in my toes as I keeled over and laughed so hard I thought I would pee myself. Of course, it looked like Emmett already had, which made it even funnier. I fell onto the floor into the leftover food crumbs and water sprinkles and clutched my side. I snorted so hard; I would have made Urkel proud.

Emmett could never stay silent, or mad for that matter, for very long. His face broke into a huge grin and a rumbling laugh escaped from his throat. He faked like he was going to kick me but then stepped over me and brought the two plates to the little dining table that was parallel to the kitchen.

I tried my best to compose myself and thanked the Flying Spaghetti Monster that I wasn't an 80-year-old with a bladder problem. I would have been done for.

"So are you going to tell me about him or are you just going to try to get me _wet_ again?" he said with an angelic face. We all knew the halo was held up with horns.

I went about filling Jessie's food and water dishes and cleaned up the small mess on the kitchen floor. "There's nothing to tell, Emmett. We danced. It was fun, a good night in all, don't you think?" I was trying to change the subject like Lady Gaga changed outfits at the VMAs, quick and awkwardly.

"Yeah, ok Bella. Whatever you say." Uh oh, he called me Bella. He never calls me Bella. "All I'm sayin' is it looked pretty intense to me, before I butted in, that is. Sorry about that, by the way."

"Nothing to be sorry about. It really isn't a big deal. Besides, intensity can be fun too, no?"

"Sure, Bells," he said flatly.

I glanced over at him to gauge the reaction that was giving him that tone of voice but he remained stoic.

"Eat up. Rose will be out soon and you still need to shower."

"Um, thanks Em. I really appreciate this, making breakfast for us and all."

"No worries."

Something was definitely weird between us but I was a bit too hungover and hungry to deal with it now.

Rose came out to breakfast as I was finishing mine so I went to grab a shower while she ate. I felt a little bit better. I would never understand how it made you feel better to eat food when the smell of it nauseated you just a few minutes ago. Ahh, hangovers.

I turned the water on and let it warm before I stepped in. I plucked my loofah off of the hook and lathered it up. As the soapy suds ran over my body, I thought of Edward. My hands followed where the loofah had been and all I could feel was the tiny indents of cellulite on my butt and the pooch on my stomach that I doubted would ever go away.

I'm a stress eater. I know I am. When I was younger it didn't matter so much, but now that I am older, it shows. If only I could channel the stress into something productive instead of something destructive. If only quitting food was as simple as a real drug. With drugs, you go through a detox. It's not easy, but it's simpler than needing a small amount of the drug to sustain your life. Especially in my line of work. I got paid to eat.

I lifted my arm and soaped up the jiggly underside. I almost felt like crying. What could make Edward even remotely attracted to me?

Sex. He must be hard-up for sex and I am simply available to him.

Well, guess what. If I have to put myself out there in that way to get a little action, then so be it. I'm truly sick of guys that seem to only want one thing and if it were anyone else, I would squelch it before it even started. But Edward.

There's something different about him. An attraction that I've not felt for anyone in a very long time. If I'm not careful, I could really fall for him. Looking into his eyes last night on the couch was hypnotic. Like our lips were magnetized and they couldn't stay away from their polar counterpart.

The decision was actually an easy one. As long as he's up for it, we'll screw around and I'll get mine.

Hopefully I won't get hurt in the process.

**

**A/N: Sorry for a bit of heartfail but at least I'm keepin' it real.**

**Along the same vein, the last chapter garnered one or two not so nice reviews (which is probably why it took me so long to finish this one). I understand that you were upset that Edward viewed Bella as "a fat girl with a pretty face"...but you have to understand that that is how a large majority of men see women of a certain size, especially when they haven't had much exposure to a plus-size girl. It's reality and if you can't handle it, feel free not to read.**

**To the readers who know what I'm talking about and sent me constructive reviews, thank you. It is all of you to whom I write. 3**


	8. Chapter 7 Big Salty Tears

A/N: Big thanks to JaspersBrand for being the best beta there is. She's SUPER BETA!! ***rips JB's shirt to show giant S underneath*** teehee :oP

Also big ups to my Twilighted beta, neveryoumind, who has an AMAZING turnaround time!

P.S. The chapter title is a song by Sublime. Check it out.

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. Stephenie Meyer has that privelege. I am merely a plus-size girl trying to make it her own.

**Chapter 7 – Big Salty Tears**

_The decision was actually an easy one. As long as he's up for it, we'll screw around and I'll get mine. _

_Hopefully I won't get hurt in the process. _

**

Rose insisted on buying us matching Durham Bulls jerseys and I felt a little bit ridiculous. This was probably the only time I would be wearing it and I thought it was a waste of money but Rose paid and said I had no excuses. Of course, with them on, she looked like a pin-up girl and I looked like Peter Griffin.

At least with Rose, I could voice my concerns about my body and she would take me seriously. She insisted that I was crazy, of course, but that if it bothered me so much, she would do my hair and make-up for me so I would feel more comfortable.

That's why I love her. My opinion of myself, while skewed, mattered to her. She didn't negate it or brush it off. She knew that it was one of my, for lack of a better word, issues, and she loved me all the same.

After we were all paid up and had our bags in hand, we decided to stroll around the mall for a little while and see if there were any shoe sales. Ok, Rose decided and I followed. After about twenty minutes of window shopping, she decided that there weren't any good sales going on. We started making our way back to the door nearest our car in the lot and I suddenly heard a booming laughter I would know anywhere.

I spun around to see Jake's towering form leaning down talking to a barista at the coffee kiosk on the bottom floor of the food court. He was perched on one elbow with his other hand touching her nametag and their faces were way too close for my comfort. I hissed at Rosalie and took off towards him. Rose followed behind me with a wide-eyed expression and no words coming out of her shocked open mouth.

"Jake," I said a little too forcefully for a morning pleasantry.

Jake whipped his head around and when I registered in his mind, his body shot up straight and he looked like a kid who was caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"Bells. Hey. What are you doing here?"

"It's a mall, Jake. I'm sure you can figure it out."

"Hi, can I get you something?" the barista piped in.

"No, thank you, but maybe Jake here would like to pick his fiancée up a nice frapuccino or a café latte. Jake?"

Rose scoffed and put her hand over her gaping mouth and Jake's dropped open in shock. _Oh I could be a bitch when I had to be._

"Sorry, Ness. Gotta go," Jake grabbed my arm and started walking. It actually really hurt but I had a smirk on my face the whole time.

Rose had followed behind us but Jake waved her off. He let go of me long enough to get in my face.

"You had _no_ right to do that, Bella. _None._"

"Oh, but you had the right to flirt with your stupid coffee ho while your fiancée is at home planning your WEDDING?!" I yelled loudly, hoping the barista would hear.

"Oh please, I'm just a place-filler. Leah's been a bridezilla for so long now, I doubt she even notices I'm gone half the time. She's made it quite clear that she does not need my help."

"So that's an excuse to go off and, what, cheat? Are you cheating, Jake?! Did your little Vanessa even know that you were engaged?"

I didn't know why I was so enraged. I didn't even really _like_ Leah. Damn code of women or whatever the hell this was.

"It's Renesmee, not Vanessa, and no, I haven't cheated, I'm just talking to...."

Before he could finish his sentence, I coughed out, "Excuse me. _Ruhnezmay_? What the hell kind of a name _IS_ that, anyway?"

"Shut up! It's Italian...or something. Look, Bells, this is really none of your business. Ness knows that I'm not happy and that's all she needs to know."

"Wow, Jake. Very classy. You know what? You and your little chippy can do whatever you want to do. I just hope Leah doesn't find out. Or, on second thought, I hope she does. Rose!" I called. Her head snapped over to make it look like she wasn't watching us out of the corner of her eye the whole time.

"Oh come on, Bella. I'm not doing anything wrong here. Besides, I'm just having fun. It's not like there are any real feelings, not like with you..." he stopped speaking and I was never more grateful.

I was floundering. Did Jake just say he thought he had feelings for me?

"ROSE!" I was freaking out. "We're leaving, NOW!"

She was at my side in a flash and we were out the doors faster than I could blink an eye.

We practically sprinted to the car and she peeled out.

"Can you BELIEVE that asshole!! Not only is he trying to tickle his pickle with little miss Loch Ness in there, but then he has the nerve to say that he has feelings for you? Un-freakin-real! He's _engaged _for cripe's sake!"

There was no way I could speak at that moment. My face was the color of a tomato and if I were a cartoon, there would be smoke coming out of my ears while a whistle sounded.

"I really just don't even wanna talk about it. Seriously. Distract me or I'll turn around and if I do that, I may not have a job tomorrow."

"Um...you should put your seatbelt on," Rose said lowly.

I laughed grimly, "You should put _your_ seatbelt on."

I didn't even really know why I was so upset. Jake's relationship was none of my business. Yet somehow, I found myself defending this woman that I barely tolerated to her fiancé who was also my friend _and_ employer. This could not end well.

We drove the rest of the way to the house in silence. I put Rage Against the Machine on my iPod and turned on the transmitter. I made it loud enough that talking was unnecessary.

I just couldn't get Leah's face out of my mind. She would be crushed if she knew what Jake had been _thinking_, let alone _doing_. She loved him, I was sure. He loved her too. I really don't know why he was going on about having feelings for me. That man has been so confused the past few months. I honestly think they had gotten caught up in the craziness of wedding planning. I hear it can get pretty intense. I wonder how many marriages would actually start off on a better foot, both emotionally _and_ financially, if they were married at a courthouse instead of "The Plaza".

Suddenly, Edward's face popped into my head. I felt a surge of lust shoot through my body followed by one of anger. I couldn't even imagine what Leah was going through and I think a bit of my outburst at Jake had to do with feeling that I, myself, was...I don't know, not good enough? Honestly, what had Leah done to deserve the way Jake was treating her? Sure, she was swamped and stressed out, but she was still the woman who loved him.

It made me completely insecure to realize that nothing is ever set in stone. Even after asking her to marry him, Jake was still unsure of how he felt. How would I ever be enough for someone looking the way that I did? Not thin enough to deserve wanting someone as hot as Edward, that's for damn sure. But he was simply beautiful. Intelligent, handsome, funny. How could anyone _not_ want him? We really did have a lot in common and man, could that boy _kiss_.

**

EPOV

I made it to Alice and Jasper's place with plenty of time to spare. After I parked the car, I started the small hike through the trail from the lot to their building in the development. I still cannot believe that my baby sister had fallen for my best friend. They never even ran in the same social circles since they were so far apart in age. The only thing they had in common was me but based on their interactions in my presence, I never would have guessed that my sister was plotting to snag Jasper.

Alice had just graduated from NC State's graduate program at the College of Design in December and she requested that I bring Jasper with me to the graduation ceremony. I was a little confused seeing as how she had only met him once at his and my college graduation years before. He also thought it was a little strange and told me many times that if I couldn't find a date, he'd be glad to set me up with someone. After I kicked his ass, I told him that Alice specifically asked him to be there and he was just as puzzled as I was. Apparently, she had planned this out quite well for years. Alice knew exactly what she was doing.

When we got there, Alice greeted us with her graduation robe folded neatly over her shoulder. She was wearing a knee length black spaghetti strap dress and had her hair in slick pincurls around her face. I tried to find my baby sister in there somewhere, but all I could see was a beautiful young woman. She flirted with Jasper for a good twenty minutes before the coordinator tracked her down to get in her spot in line. She threw her robe on and left to get in line, blowing a kiss in our direction. I knew that shit wasn't meant for me and I almost beat his ass again trying to find out what was going on.

He was clueless. After the ceremony, my parents took us all out to dinner and she and Jasper sat in deep conversation for the majority of the meal. They've been that way ever since. Six months after that night, Alice convinced Jasper that he should move in with her. That was about 4 months ago. It's still so new and they moved so fast, but they seem so sure.

I wish I could be that sure about a relationship.

I reached the top of the steps and rounded the corner to their door. Alice threw the door open before I even brought my hand up to knock.

"Hey big brother!" she said cheerfully as she hugged me.

"Hey Ali, how's it going?"

"Oh, wonderfully. We are going to have such a good time tonight, don't you think?"

"We? Are you coming with us?" I said a silent prayer that she would so that I would have a buffer between Jasper and myself.

"Yes I am. Emmett had extra tickets and gave one to me."

"Glad to have you along, little bit."

I was very happy to have Alice with us. At least I had someone to talk to as Jasper kept his eyes on the road. It seemed that he couldn't pay much attention to anything else. Alice tried to keep me talking the whole time but the ride was still frigid.

We got to the game without Jasper saying a single word to me. I was almost afraid to find out what was bothering him because he didn't usually shut me out like this even when we'd had arguments in the past. I might have asked him if it wasn't for my sister being with us.

We found our seats, three in a row, and I was wondering where Bruiser was going to sit just when I heard a booming "Hey fuckers!" from behind me. I spun around to see the tank walking towards us. Directly behind him was his blonde bombshell and Bella.

I felt my insides squeeze together. I didn't know she was going to be here. Is it going to be awkward? Is she going to out me in front of everybody?

Will she want to sit by me?

My hands kept wringing together like a little old man with arthritis as the three of them approached us.

"Hey ladies!" Alice chimed in. "Come on, we can all sit together!"

She excused herself from between Jasper and I and the three girls moved to the three empty seats in the row in front of us. Bella was directly in front of me, with Rose to her left, and Alice at the end. Jasper moved next to me so Thor wouldn't have to step over him to get to us.

As they settled into their seats, I couldn't help feeling a little empty as I looked down at Bella and felt an unexpected tug to be closer her. She looked so cute in her baseball jersey that matched Rosalie's. Her hair was in loose waves that fell past her shoulders and when the wind blew, it would swirl around her neck.

When she turned to the left to talk to the girls, I could see how nicely the top of the shirt hugged her chest and I felt a familiar tightening in my pants.

I wriggled around in my seat a little to try to readjust myself in the hopes that no one would notice the tent I was erecting. Thomas the Tank Engine noticed my little booty dance and his eyes glanced down at my pants before chuckling to himself and turning his attention back to the field. Tunnel vision, my ass. He is more astute than Bella gives him credit for. I'm going to have to really watch myself with that guy.

**

BPOV

Wow, he didn't even make eye contact with me. He can stick his tongue down my throat but can't look me in the eye. Asshole.

That's fine. He may not be able to look at my eyes, but I can get him to look at other body parts.

I turned to talk to Rose, making sure sure the girls were front and center, as perky as possible. A gust of wind blew and before I knew it, I was cutting glass. Perfect.

I saw him out of the corner of my eye squirming in his seat. How lucky for women that men loved boobs so much. A little nipple goes a long way.

As the game was finally getting started, there was a pop-up to left field and the outfielder came running in like he had a purpose, then promptly missed the ball because the sun was hitting him right in the face. I swore like a sailor and the guy in the seat to my right chuckled at me.

"Heh. Sorry. That wasn't very ladylike of me."

"That's OK. It's nice to see a girl get excited over sports."

"I really only care when I'm actually at a sporting event. Watching it on TV just isn't the same."

"I agree. I try to get out to games as much as possible. I'm Erik," he held his hand out for me to shake.

Erik had beautiful dark black hair and piercing blue eyes. He looked like he would be very tall standing up. His eyes bore into mine as I took his hand and noticed that he had a very strong grip.

"Bella. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise. This is my buddy, James." He pointed at the man to his right and I gave him a courtesy head nod.

Three innings later and I had found out that Erik and James were both from up north, Pennsylvania to be exact. It seemed that they were exceedingly proud of the fact that they were from Scranton where The Office was set. Apparently the show was very close to the real thing and that cracked them up.

They had both majored in IT and met at college becoming fast friends. After they graduated, they decided to move to an area rich in computer science and settled on the Triangle.

By the end of the fifth inning, we had been talking and flirting so much that Erik asked if he could have my phone number. I complied and read the number out loud to him so he could enter it into his phone.

I still hadn't forgotten about Edward even though he had clearly forgotten about me. He didn't make any effort to speak to either of us even after he heard that they were in computers like he was.

I felt a tapping on my shoulder and got chills. _Finally_. I turned around to see Rose smiling me and my good spirits dissipated.

"Hey, come to the ladies with me? Em's gonna go get us something to nosh on. And Jasper's gonna get the guys some beer."

"Sure." I turned to Erik and excused myself.

Alice let Rose and me out and after Emmett and Jasper had left their row, she joined her brother in the back row.

He glared at me as we walked past and I felt sick to my stomach. _What the fuck is going on?_

**

EPOV

I couldn't believe she gave that douchebag her phone number. All he did was blow smoke up her ass during the entire conversation. Luckily for me I memorized the number as soon as she said it and when she got up with Rose, I punched it into my phone.

I honestly don't know when I became so stalkerish, but my justification was that _that_ guy is no better than I am, so there's no reason why I shouldn't have her number too.

My sister came to sit by me but we really didn't talk that much. The game was still going on and now that I didn't have to overhear Bella and dickhead's conversation, I was free to pay attention.

"Oh come on man, it's going to be so easy. Like shooting pufferfish in a barrel."

Erik high-fived James and brought my attention back to them.

"I don't know man. Just because she's big doesn't mean she's going to just give it up."

_Excuse me?_

"What are you fucking kidding me? Of _course_ it does. What are the chances that a fatty like that is actually getting any? She'd probably beg me for it."

What a fucking asshole. There is no way I'm going to let Bella anywhere near this scumbag. Although I did wonder if she would believe me or if she would just think I was jealous. I mean, I was initially, but who in their right mind would be jealous of a loser like him.

Erik chuckled to himself and then elbowed his friend, "Hey James, how do you fuck a fat chick?"

James rolled his eyes and smiled waiting for Erik to give his punchline.

"You roll her in flour and find the wet spot!"

_Oh, I don't fucking think so._

"Shut your mouth, mother fucker," I snarled as I launched myself at him while my arms acted of their own accord. My right fist connected with his jaw and he crouched down. His friend came at me over the seats but I lifted my foot up and kicked him in the chest. I heard my sister scream and I yelled for her to get back.

Erik had gotten back up and jumped up to stand on the seat. He was towering over me and fell down on top of me. I was laying on the floor of our row as he kneed me in the gut and started punching me in the throat and the side of the head.

I heard Alice shriek and saw her coming towards us. She tried to push him off of me but he shoved her really hard and she fell down on her ass.

Suddenly I heard a male voice and realized that Jasper has returned with the beer that was now thrown on the ground. He tried to get to Erik when he saw him push Alice but I was still under him so I got to him first.

"That's my sister you son of a bitch," I wrapped my hands together in a double fist and punched him as hard as I could in the sternum and he went down. He was rolling around on the ground, barely breathing and gasping for air.

The security guards were on us by then and separated us to escort us out of different gates. As they were pushing us up the stairs to the main aisle, we saw the girls and the big guy coming towards us with shocked faces. Jasper and I were restrained by the two security guards but Alice ran to them. My eyes went wide wondering if she was going to tell them what that asshole had said.

From what I could hear, she didn't tell Bella what Erik had said, just that there was a fight and we had to leave. Bella kept pushing and wanted to know why I hit him. She was so confused and getting really irate with me as we got to the gate of the stadium.

"Jasper and I are going to go get the cars. We'll be right back. Try not to start another fight while we're gone. Think you can handle that?" The meathead looked at me when he spoke so I flipped him off.

Alice wouldn't leave Jasper's side, so she left to go with him to his car. Quasimodo walked off to get his car and Rosalie ran after him at the last second. It was just me and Bella. I sat on the bench outside and she sat at the other end. It was eerily quiet for a few minutes until she finally spoke.

"What happened in there, Edward?"

"Nothing. It was just a misunderstanding," I lied.

"Well then why did you hit Erik? Did he do something to you?"

"No, he didn't do anything to me." Not directly, at least.

"Did he hurt Alice? She seemed pretty shaken up."

I didn't even know what to say at that point. I just stayed silent.

"Damnit Edward. I would really like you to tell me what the fight was about."

I blew out a gust of air. What was the point of lying to her?

"He said something he shouldn't have...about you."

"Oh," she paused. "Well, what did he say?"

"It was crude Bella. It was disgusting and untrue."

"Edward, just fucking tell me or I'll hit you next."

I glanced over to her and she looked like she actually meant it. There was fire in her eyes.

"He said that he wanted to fuck you and that you'd be an easy lay." There was no way in hell I was going to tell her the rest of it. She didn't deserve that.

"Oh."

"Yeah, so I decked him."

"You hit him...because he said that about me?" She was staring at me but I was afraid to meet her eyes. I had acted like a jerk, getting in a fight like I was still a teenager. Granted, it was for a good cause. But still, it wasn't very mature.

"Yeah. Plus he shoved Alice when she was trying to stop the fight and no one gets to pick on my sister but me." I knew I sounded like a five year-old and I didn't care.

"Edward, look at me."

Oh no. There it was. _You're a jerk. You're an asshole. You're a child._ I already knew all of that. I really didn't want to hear it from Bella's lips too.

She got off the bench and kneeled down in front of me but I wouldn't, couldn't look at her. I kept my eyes lowered to the ground by my shoes.

Bella reached out her hand and put her fingers under my chin. She lifted my head until my eyes met hers. They were filled with compassion and tears.

Her other hand reached out to touch my cheek. I assumed it was already bruising because it hurt when she grazed my cheekbone.

She leaned forward and placed her lips on mine.

I kissed her back hard. I wanted to show her that what that dick had said was so far from the truth. She was a human being like anyone and should be respected. She was a kind person. She was Bella.

The fight must have made me dizzy because I was very unsteady. I leaned forward and fisted my hands in her hair to keep me grounded.

She broke the kiss and leaned back to look at me. She came back to my mouth and placed another small kiss on my lips before getting up and sitting back on the bench.

"Thank you," she said softly.

I pulled out my phone and opened up a new text message, **you're welcome**.

She smiled and saved my number just as the guys drove the cars up to the curb. I got in Jasper's car and Bella got in with Rosalie and Biggie.

I saw her sweet eyes watching mine as she drove away and thought to myself..._it was worth it_.

**

A/N: Nothing more to say down here. Thank you for reading and reviewing.


	9. Chapter 8 Closer to Me

A/N: JaspersBrand is an awesome beta. You should check out her story, Wonderwall!! (http://www(dot)twilighted(dot)?sid=6511)

Big thanks to my Twilighted beta, NeverYouMind, who picked my story out of all the others she could have beta'd. Seriously, that's so fricking cool. :oP

P.S. The chapter title is a song by The Cure. Check it out.

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. Stephenie Meyer has that privelege. I am merely a plus-size girl trying to make it her own.

**Chapter 8 – Close to Me**

_She leaned forward and placed her lips on mine. _

_I kissed her back hard. I wanted to show her that what that dick had said was so far from the truth. She was a human being like anyone and should be respected. She was a kind person. She was Bella._

_The fight must have made me dizzy because I was very unsteady. I leaned forward and fisted my hands in her hair to keep me grounded. _

_She broke the kiss and leaned back to look at me. She came back to my mouth and placed another small kiss on my lips before getting up and sitting back on the bench._

_"Thank you," she said softly._

_I pulled out my phone and opened up a new text message, __**you're welcome**__._

_She smiled and saved my number just as the guys drove the cars up to the curb. I got in Jasper's car and Bella got in with Rosalie and Biggie. _

_I saw her sweet eyes watching mine as she drove away and thought to myself..._it was worth it.

**

BPOV

Well that was an interesting car ride. Emmett was shooting me knowing glances in the rearview mirror the entire time and I was starting to get self-conscious. Did he see me kiss Edward? Does he know why Edward snapped at the game? I sure as hell wasn't going to ask him and open up the brand new can of worms I was precariously holding.

Luckily once we got back to the condo, Emmett knocked off the side-eye and ordered a pizza for us since our hot dogs ended up on the steps of the stadium. After forty-five minutes of staring at the television, pretending to watch, the bell rang and Em got the pizza and salad from the delivery guy.

Rose checked her crackberry and grumbled about "stupid morons", grabbed a slice of pizza, and went into her room and shut the door.

Emmett and I brought the boxes over to the table and got our own slices to eat...slowly...uncomfortably. I'd known Emmett forever and even on a night that was less anxiety-ridden, I would never have eaten more than one slice of pizza in front of him. I stopped at one.

"You can have more, B. We got two pies, there's plenty."

"That's ok, I'm good."

"Damnit Bella, what's the problem? You eat for a living so why do you do that?"

"Do what?" My eyes shot down to my plate. I didn't want to look at him for fear that I would tear up in front of him.

"Stop yourself when you've had only a fraction of what the rest of us have had," he said angrily.

"You don't get it," I said coldly. "You've never had to worry about your weight." I scoffed at him and his football star build.

"The hell I didn't. I was very overweight when I was a kid. Remember Jerry O'Connell from Stand By Me?" I nodded. That was one of my favorite movies. "Yeah, that was me," Emmett finished.

"So, how did you lose the weight, then?" I was always interested to know how normal people lost weight. People who didn't turn to food when the stress of real life got to them and they didn't know how to cope. People who dealt with their anxieties in less harmful ways.

"I stopped thinking about losing weight."

"Uh, what?" Ok, now he's just fucking with me.

"Seriously."

"Emmett, I want to understand you but right now, I just don't. Do you not get what other people see when they look at me? They see 'the cute fat chick'. They see the girl that will always 'bounce back' because of how much fucking padding I have." I angrily made quotes with my fingers as I spoke. "Don't look at me like that! Mike said those exact words to me right after I caught him fucking that skinny bitch on _our _couch in _our _apartment."

"I know that, sweetie. But are you really going to take to heart something that douchebag said? We all saw the way he treated you, B. He wasn't good enough to wipe your ass on his best day." Emmett sighed, frustrated with me.

He took a deep breath and began again, slowly. "Bella, if someone insults you and you take it to heart, you start to believe the lie. You are beautiful and yet when it comes to guys, you believe the lie. Stop thinking about how others see you and even stop thinking so hard about how you see yourself. Just be. If you keep worrying about how your ass looks in your jeans, you'll completely miss the guy who's obviously noticing you. Just live your life, B. This is all we get and I love you too much to see you hold yourself back."

I knew he was right. I knew that as long as I let Mike hold this over my head that I'd never be free. I'd never be able to accept that I was a good person.

A person worth knowing.

A person worth _loving_.

I looked over at Emmett and the love I saw in his eyes made me emotional. He was a true friend and even though I knew that I had a long road to get my self-esteem back to where I wanted it to be, I had to throw the big dog a bone.

I smiled at him and reached for another slice of pizza.

****Later that night****

This book was freaking amazing. _Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife_. It was the unauthorized and unofficial sequel to Pride and Prejudice. It was written in a similar prose to Jane Austen's work and it was gloriously filled with smut. It made me giggle every time I read something along the lines of "he thrust his manhood into my nether-region." Let's just say the new Mrs. Darcy had a penchant for seeing Mr. Darcy in his riding breeches..._only_ his riding breeches.

The thought of thrusting into nether-regions made me think of Edward and I glanced to my cell phone on the bedside table. Fucking thing was taunting me.

Suddenly I heard Emmett's voice in my head, "Just live your life – this is all we get."

Ok, fuck it all.

I picked up the phone and texted Edward – **How's your hand? -B**

Not twenty seconds later, my phone beeped a reply – **It's on ice + I took meds, how are you? -E**

**Doing fine, reading b4 bed. You? -B**

**Listening to music and staring at the ceiling, thinking. -E**

**About? -B**

**Today. You. -E**

**Oh. -B**

**Does that make you uncomfortable? -E**

**No. I just wasn't expecting that. -B**

**Good surprise or bad surprise? -E**

**LoL good. -B**

***wipes brow* just checking -E**

**goof. -B**

**That would be me. Wanna talk on the phone? -E**

Ok, get your shit together, Bella. They can hear the fear...wait, that's dogs...and smelling. Damnit! Calm down, woman. I took a deep breath and texted my response – **sure. -B**

Two seconds later my phone rang. Should I pick it up right away? It rang again. Or would he think that I was waiting for him to call, but wait, you were just texting! Third ring. He knows you're by the phone, just answer it!

"Hello?" I asked into the phone. Why was I asking; I knew it was him.

"Hey Bella." His voice sounded like satin and I felt my face flush as the memory of our kiss on the bench flooded my mind.

"Hi Edward. I'm glad your hand is doing alright."

"Thanks. I can't really talk long because I have to get up early for work tomorrow but I had to...I wanted to talk to you."

I got butterflies in my stomach. This beautiful boy...this intelligent, sweet, tech nerd, foodie...wanted to talk to me. I was in heaven.

"About anything in particular?" I wondered if he could hear my voice waver.

"Nope – oh wait, well I do want to get your email address if you want to give it to me."

I mentally snorted. 'Give it to me.' Oh I'd give it to him, alright.

"IMSwan(at)gmail(dot)com" I spoke slowly so he could write it down.

"Oh cool, I have gmail too, EdwardACullen(at)gmail(dot)com, so we can Gchat if we're ever online at the same time...if you want to."

"Ok, that sounds like a plan." I almost thanked him again for what he did for me at the stadium but I wanted to end the night on a good note.

"K, well I'll email you tomorrow then. Night Bella." Oh how I loved to hear my name fall from his lips.

"Goodnight Edward."

That voice. The way he knocked the shit out of that asshole at the game. Our kiss on the bench and the way he fisted his hands into my hair.

I rubbed myself frantically until I came, softly panting Edward's name, and then I fell asleep.

**

I knew I was lucky to not have a traditional job, one with set hours and long commutes in rush hour traffic. But even a 10am meeting on Monday morning was too much for me to handle after the events of last night.

I had to meet Jake and two other features writers at the offices of Locality in downtown Raleigh. In the middle of the meeting, Jake thought it would be a good idea to try to get my attention while one of the other writers was giving a status report on three new restaurants that had opened along the downtown strip.

There was no way in hell I was going to give him the satisfaction of acknowledging his presence. I just sat there taking notes of my own until I gave my own status report. After the meeting was over, I tried desperately to pack up and get out of the conference room but Joseph and Andrew must have been over-caffeinated and I found myself alone with Jake.

He quickly got up to shut the door and I gave him the stink-eye.

He put his hands up in front of him, pleading with me to let him speak and of course, I did.

"Bells, I'm so sorry for everything yesterday morning. I know I stepped over the line but I think I needed a good, hard smack in the face. When I got home yesterday afternoon, I told Leah that I wanted to cancel the wedding."

Holy shit. I quickly found my words.

"Jake, aside from the fact that you're my _boss_, you are like a brother to me. Not to mention the fact that you've apparently had a little chippy on the side for...how long?"

"Just a few months."

"Ha, 'just'?"

"Nothing happened with Ness. We kissed twice and the rest was just talk. Anyway, what I wanted to tell you is that I'm so sorry. I came clean to Leah yesterday."

"You told your fiancée that you have feelings for me and that you've been seeing the Scotland Slut Monster?"

"No – I told my wife that I was afraid she was in love with flowers and bridesmaids dresses instead of me and we talked for hours and then we made a decision."

"Oh? And was that when you cancelled the...did you say your wife?"

He was grinning at me and he looked like a carefree little boy. I hadn't seen him that way since before he and Leah had gotten engaged.

"Yes I did," he said proudly. "At 8am this morning, Leah and I were standing out front of the courthouse giggling like schoolkids."

Apparently Leah felt it too. She knew the wedding plans were spiraling out of control but felt powerless to stop 'The Mom Train', as Jake so eloquently put it. So now, instead of being stressed out about having everything perfect for their wedding, they were free to focus on what they wanted their marriage to be. They didn't tell anyone except Leah's little brother, Seth, who was the witness for their service.

I was speechless. And let me just tell you, that doesn't happen often.

They weren't telling anyone. Jake said that they were going to go through with the big ceremony as if this morning hadn't happened. He said Leah wanted her family to be happy and now that she was his wife, that's all the happiness she needed.

Hmm. I obviously didn't give Leah enough credit. She'd even insisted on the two of them jetting off to the Poconos for a few days as an impromptu mini-honeymoon. Photographers and seating charts be damned. She was a good woman. I'm just glad that Jake realized that before he really screwed everything up.

Jake hugged me and was halfway out the door when he stopped short, "Oh, Bella! By the way, you're going to have to do Forks and Spoons alone this week, but I'll be back to proof your write-up. Laters babe."

I sat at the conference table in shock for a few minutes. That could have gone _so_ differently. _So_ much worse. But luckily, Jake and Leah got their happy ending, er, beginning.

Stupid Renesmee.

**

I got home and took Jessie for a nice, long walk on the trails. She always loved running into random friends and would stop to greet them...for about twenty minutes. She would sniff and sniff their "nether-regions" until the other dogs got frustrated with her and backed away. For such a little dog, she sure was feisty, just the way I liked her.

After walking the longest trail in the area, it was almost 1pm and I realized I hadn't had lunch yet. We wandered back to the house and I decided to run to Foster's Cafe for a nice bagel sandwich. I was standing in line, waiting patiently for my sandwich, when my phone sounded an incoming text.

**You've got mail. -E**

I took my bagel to go.

**

A/N: If you loved Emmett's response to Bella's insecurities, please watch this short video http://www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=PyQ_IKkAM9I - Joy Nash is a personal hero of mine and this is one of my favorite videos, EVER.

I know it's been a while since I updated but things were crazy for a while. I'm hoping to be able to update more frequently now that the holidays are over. Either way, I'm so thankful for everyone who reads and reviews my stories.

Also, big thanks to my facebook twi-hOors. Each and every one of them rocks my socks and I'm so glad to call them friends.

P.S. Closer to Me is a song by The Cure - http://www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=p3hdytcAUjI

P.P.S. Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife is a book by the smuttastic Linda Berdoll - http://www(dot)amazon(dot)com/Mr-Darcy-Takes-Wife-Prejudice/dp/1402202733


	10. Chapter 9 Motionless Wheel

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. Stephenie Meyer has that privilege. I am merely a plus-size girl trying to make it her own.

_After walking the longest trail in the area, it was almost 1pm and I realized I hadn't had lunch yet. We wandered back to the house and I decided to run to Foster's Cafe for a nice bagel sandwich. I was standing in line, waiting patiently for my sandwich, when my phone sounded an incoming text._

_**You've got mail. -E**_

_I took my bagel to go._

Chapter 9 – Motionless wheel

EPOV

I stared at the ceiling thinking about the day. I can't believe I just attacked that asshole for what he said about Bella. I mean, he pissed me off, yes. But I just launched myself at him.

I had to, though. You can't talk about someone as sweet at Bella like that without someone stepping in and shutting you up. And this time, that someone was me.

It fucking felt good.

What didn't feel good, however, was my fist which was now wrapped in a towel that contained a shitton of ice. It was not quite numb yet from the ice, so it was still shooting a healthy dose of pain up my arm, seemingly with every heartbeat.

Right at that second, I thought of Bella again and that heartbeat quickened, along with the pain from my arm. The ice must have been doing its job, though, because it hardly hurt anymore. All I could think about was her hair blowing in the breeze as she knelt in front of me and kissed me with tear-filled eyes.

I wondered what she was doing right then. Was she too busy with her friends to spare a thought for the guy who punched her would-be not-so-lover in his big stupid nose?

My phone chirped on the nightstand and I grabbed it with my one good hand.

It was Bella. Seems she spared a thought for me after all.

BPOV

I drove home quicker than I normally would have. I wanted to get to Edward's email and not have to read it on the tiny screen on my phone. My bagel sandwich was wrapped up and perched precariously in the passenger seat and I tried to keep one hand on it at all times in case I took a turn too hard.

I got back to the house and took the steps two at a time before I realized that I'd left the food on the car seat. I ran back down and ran back up faster than I thought possible. I opened the door and put the food on the counter before springing into the living room to see my beautiful Macbook sitting there waiting for me.

Inside that little box of wires and electricity was my email from Edward. I opened the laptop and waited for the tiny log-in window that appeared every time I roused it from hibernation.

Nothing came. The screen was black. I wiggled my finger around on the mousepad for a few seconds and again, nothing.

I shut the top of the computer and stared at it, willing it to wake the fuck up.

I opened it again and the log-in window appeared.

After breathing a sigh of relief, I typed in my password and hit Enter.

My background appeared and I was greeted with a quote I loved from my favorite book series, "Like everything in life, I just had to decide what to do with what I was given."

Best advice ever.

I brought up Chrome and navigated to Gmail.

Four new emails. The first was from Jake, the second Rose. One was from Tyler, a coworker, and the last from Edward.

I bypassed all of the others and went straight to his.

From: Edward Cullen

Subject: Case of the Mondays

Date: August 7 , 2009 12:48 PM EST

To: Isabella Swan

Bella,

Hope you're having a good Monday. Work is slow today, so I thought I'd do some browsing. Did you know that the two owners of Forks and Spoons are Americans that were adopted into an Asian family? That's where they got the idea - they fell in love with their parents' culture and wanted to devote their lives to it.

Amazing, right? To literally stumble upon what your life will be. I wonder what that's like, to not have to make a choice - to be born, or adopted I guess, into a life like that.

Ah well, sorry for the rambling. Told you work was slow, lol. Anyway, hit me up if you're not busy later.

- Edward

P.S. My hand feels much better today. :o)

I read it twice. It was surprisingly soulful and he seemed so sad. I remembered trying to ask him about his job at the club that night but he shrugged it off and turned the conversation back to me. Was this his way of reaching out?

I didn't want to seem desperate so I decided to check the other emails before I responded. Rose's said that Emmett would be over later and wanted to know if we could BBQ on the deck, the coworker wondered if I could edit some of his stuff, and Jake's email was short, seeing as he was leaving on his honeymoon, and contained the same information that Edward's had given me. I was going to do more of my own research, of course, but how funny that they had both told me the same things.

And how thoughtful. I had told Edward about Forks and Spoons in passing, never believing that he was actually listening to me talk.

I wondered if I should invite him along to the restaurant when I went on Thursday. It was in the middle of a normal 9-5-er's workday, but if he was the assistant manager, surely he could get away for an hour or so.

With Gmail opened back up again, I composed an email in response.

From: Isabella Swan

Subject: Noms

Date: August 7 , 2009 1:12 PM EST

To: Edward Cullen

Hey Edward,

Thanks for the information. I was already going to do some research and that was a great start.

If you want, you could come with me to the restaurant for the lunch rush on Thursday. My boss was going to come with me but something came up and eating alone is not as fun. So, let me know if you'd want to. I remembered that you were interested in the premise and if you were doing your own research, you might as well see it firsthand.

As for my Monday, I had a meeting this morning and I just got home. I will be around doing some editing for part of the day and research for the other part, so if work doesn't pick up, feel free to email back.

Hope you have a great day,

Bella

I grabbed my bagel sandwich off of the counter and got some juice from the fridge. I reopened the email from Tyler and began to edit the article he sent.

Two minutes later, I heard a ping coming from my laptop speakers. I noticed something blinking up in the tabs of Chrome and realized I left my Gmail up and someone was messaging me.

Edward.

My stomach did a flip and I wasn't hungry anymore. I put my sandwich down on the coffee table and clicked on the tab.

Edward Cullen says...

Definitely. The restaurant sounds great. Is noon good? I can take an hour at work and meet you there.

Isabella Swan says...

Hey, that sounds fine by me. I like to catch them at their busiest to see how they cope with the stress.

Edward Cullen says...

That makes sense.

I waited a minute or two to see if he'd say anything else but my curiosity got the best of me.

Isabella Swan says...

Work still slow or is it getting better?

Edward Cullen...

Slow and boring. Although, honestly, even when it's busy, it's still pretty boring.

I knew it. I knew he felt unchallenged at his job. I wonder if it would be overstepping a boundary for me to talk to him more seriously about it.

I decided that no, it wouldn't, because he was the one who brought it up.

Isabella Swan says...

So tell me what you'd rather be doing with your life.

I waited for a good 3 minutes before there was any movement.

Edward Cullen is typing...

JPOV

As sure as I was that Bella liked Edward, I was doubly sure that it was a bad idea for the two of them to get together.

Before Mike, Bella had been vivacious and outgoing, despite her believing she was a "fat chick".

After Mike, she turned inside herself and instead of owning up to her feelings, she shoved them deep down and barely even discussed what had happened. I know she had told my sister, because Rose told me, and afterwards Rose had also told Emmett. He had said something to Bella about it but I don't know how much information she actually let the big guy have.

It's ridiculously frustrating watching someone you love like a sister lose a part of herself. From what Rose said, Bella went to a birthday party for another friend. Mike didn't go because he rarely did anything social when it didn't involve his friends and either pot and/or beer.

There was a huge bar fight at the place where the party was being held so they called it an early night and Bella headed home. She walked into their apartment, the one she shared with Mike, to find him with his cock buried balls deep in some skinny blonde that he had apparently met online.

She flipped out and demanded that the bitch leave. Bella ran in the bedroom and slammed the door. After an hour of crying so hard she was popping blood vessels in her head, she walked out of the bedroom expecting to find Mike waiting to talk. Instead she found the two of them still cuddled up on the couch.

Next to them was Jessie. And the blonde was petting her.

Bella. Went. Crazy.

She ripped the blonde up by the hair and flung her across the room towards the door, telling her if she ever stepped foot in her house again, she would rip out her implants and choke her to death with them.

Jessie was her baby. In Bella's mind, to have that skank pet her dog was worse than finding her fucking her boyfriend on the couch.

She proceeded to slap and punch and bite Mike so hard that he cowered into a corner in the kitchen. He slowly slid down to the floor to try to get away from her, but that just incensed her that much more. She kicked him with everything she had and he cried like a baby on the kitchen floor.

She took Jessie in the bedroom and locked it. She stayed up half the night packing and the next day, she and Jessie left the apartment, only going back with Rose and I to pick up the rest of her stuff when we knew the douchebag wasn't there.

I left a nasty note on the bathroom floor with the pink strawberry-flavored lube that he has so distastefully left on the couch.

As sad and heartbroken as Bella was, Rose had told me that as she and Jessie hopped in the car to leave that morning, Bella had turned around to her fur daughter in the back seat and shouted, "Daddy's dead!" That had made me laugh until I cried. Only Bella.

See, Bella was special. She had a thick-skinned facade mostly in place due to years of being treated like a social pariah. She wasn't a skinny girl but she was far from being one of those dudes that had to be lifted out of their houses with a crane. She was beautiful and intelligent and Mike tore her down to within an inch of her sanity and self-esteem.

It's so unfair that all she did was love and give and all he did was ridicule and take.

Honestly, I think she was so excited to have someone interested in her for something other than checking "big girl" off of their To-Do list, that she let his many, MANY, flaws slip by the wayside.

She was finally at a place in her life where she was settled and her confidence was coming back. If I allowed her to hang around Edward, I knew she would get hurt.

He has never once dated a bigger girl. In fact, much to his detriment, his type was always thin and blonde. Bella needed someone safe; she needed someone who was used to dealing with insecurities. The only insecurities Edward had ever dealt with were his own. If a girl had "issues", as he called them, he tended to drop off the radar.

I don't think I could handle it if one of my best friends broke my other one. That part of my thought process may have been selfish, but there it was. My life would be easier if Edward would stay the hell away from Bella and I was going to make sure that's what happened.

BPOV

Edward Cullen is typing...

I sat and waited patiently.

Edward Cullen says...

It's not really that simple, although I do appreciate you asking. I feel like, even though I chose this path, it's not what I should be doing. I sit at a desk most of the day filing paperwork and dealing with employees that don't want to be here much more than I do. I mean, seriously, who knows what they want to do at age 17 enough to be able to pick a major and actually stick with it for the rest of your life?

Isabella Swan says...

I agree with you 100%, but...

There are always options Edward. Depending on what your major was, you could turn it any way you wanted in order to get a job that you'd be happier in, no?

Edward Cullen says...

Business major with a minor in IT. I'm doing exactly what my degree says I should be doing but it's not enough, you know? I've thought about this a million times. If I had my choice, I'd open up a little cafe that doubled as a piano bar in the evenings and on weekends.

Hold up. This man wanted to run a piano bar. Could he actually play or was he just a fan?

Isabella Swan says...

Do you play or do you just want to own the place?

Edward Cullen says...

Oh, I play. Music and food pretty much tie for the two greatest loves of my life.

I don't know why but I blushed as soon as I read his words.

Isabella Swan says...

Good choices. :o)

Before I could finish what I wanted to type, I noticed he was already replying.

Edward Cullen says...

I gotta go. Customer needs me. So, Thursday at lunch, right? I'm looking forward to that place. Need me to bring anything besides me?

Adorable. And amazing, it seems.

I think I'm in trouble.

Isabella Swan is typing...

Nope, just need you.

I froze a mere millisecond from hitting the Enter button and backspaced.

Isabella Swan says...

Nope. Just you. See you Thursday if we don't talk before.

Edward Cullen says...

We'll talk before. Later Bella.

He signed off and I floated up to la la land.

A/N: The title of this chapter comes from a song off the Garden State Soundtrack called In The Waiting Line. That whole soundtrack will change your life. Totally, for cereal. :oP

Don't forget to vote for your favorite fics in The Indie Twific Awards! I'm up in the Love Conquers All category for Touched. http:/theindietwificawards[dot]com/vote[dot]aspx

My beta, JaspersBrand is also up for 2 awards for her fic Wonderwall!


	11. Chapter 10 In Deep

Chapter 10

BPOV

Was this a date? I mean, we didn't officially say that it was a date. It's just a lunch and he's just coming to keep me company since Jake's away and he seemed so interested, right? Right.

I was stressing. Even though we had an email or two throughout the week and the occasional text, I hadn't seen Edward since the baseball game and I was so nervous I couldn't stand it.

That's how I ended up here, sitting in my car outside Forks and Spoons a full half hour early. I wanted to be the first one there so I could adjust myself and make sure I looked all cool and aloof sitting in my car when in reality I was anything but.

I rifled through the few CDs I had leftover in my car and then decided to go digital. I fished my iPod out of my purse and plugged the FM transmitter in. A few scrolls later and I found one of my favorite soundtracks to mellow out to. Some of the songs were a bit depressing but the rest of them were pure poetry.

Unbuckling my seatbelt, I adjusted my shirt so it wasn't bunched up or anything and then I went back into my purse to grab some powder and lip gloss for last minute touch-ups. I was never a big make-up user because it tended to cause break-outs. But going to lunch with Edward, date or not, was definitely an occasion for kissable lips.

[I] Situation's all critical

You've got to look first before you go

If you wasn't too sure then now you know

The situation is critical [I]

The music was finally starting to calm my ever-present nerves and I plunked my head on the headrest and shut my eyes.

I heard a car door slam and my eyes flew open to see Edward getting out of his car and walking toward mine.

[I] Deep into the darkness where I hide

Deep into the darkness where I hide [I]

The slight breeze blew the untucked front of his shirt around he looked like a Greek god in slow motion as he smirked at me and continued walking.

All of a sudden I was out of the car and he was right there in front of me. I ran to him and flung my arms around his neck, pulling his lips down to mine. He didn't hesitate to open my mouth with his own, thrusting his tongue in to meet mine.

A knock on the window brought me out of my delicious daydream as Edward stood outside my car looking at me like I'd grown a second head.

I shut the engine off and got out.

"Hey! Sorry, I was, um, listening to music. Wanted to hear the end of the song that was on," I mumbled.

"Ah, not a problem. I do that too." Oh thank god he's a nerd-burger like I was. "So, you ready to go in? Hey, do they know you're coming today?"

Oh Edward, will [I] you [/I] be the one making me come today?

"Oh, um, I usually call them the morning of, so they know I'm coming but they don't have too much time to do any special prep that's out of the ordinary."

He seemed genuinely interested. I don't know why I'm always surprised when a guy wants to know something just to know it and not to use it as ammunition.

"Don't want them to do anything that they don't normally do - otherwise it wouldn't be true to how they usually run the business."

"So it's like a...culinary pop quiz?" He chuckled and gave me the side-eye.

I chuckled. "Yeah, something like that. Let's go in."

We were greeted by Andrew, the front-of-the-house man - he even bowed which caused Edward to give me a strange look. After we were seated at a small table near the water fountain in the back, a slow smile crept up on Edward's face.

I couldn't help but to smile back but only because it was making me uncomfortable.

"What?"

"You're like, important."

"I am?"

I could feel the heat creep up my neck as the flush colored my face.

"Yeah. I mean, your write-ups are. One bad review and the it can make or break the restaurant. How do you deal with that kind of pressure?"

"Well, you're an Assistant Manager. You've given employee reviews before, right?"

He nodded.

"It's kind of like that, except way more fun," I grinned. "The people running restaurants have major cajones. They have their whole heart and soul in it, so I get to review people that give their whole lives to do exactly what they're doing. Ninety percent of the time, they impress me, and that other ten percent maybe shouldn't be in the business in the first place."

"Wow. That's very blunt and a little harsh, don't you think? What if that other ten percent is trying really hard but they just don't have the skills to do what it takes to impress you?"

The waitress came and somewhat interrupted our discussion. I wanted to explain to him that I was not as harsh as all that but I had a job to do.

I had looked over their menu online and I had selected 3 key dishes to review - an appetizer, an entree, and a dessert. Since Edward followed my lead, we were ordering a lot of food which would be fantastic for a double-review.

When the waitress had taken our menus and finally walked away, I leaned in close to Edward from across the table and spoke softly.

"Edward, in my personal life, that ten percent always counts. People who try always count. But in my professional life, I have to separate the skilled from the unskilled. It's what I do. It's in the job description. I love that I get to be picky about something that I know a great deal about. I'm a little mini-expert and that's what they pay me to do."

He didn't say anything for a good thirty seconds and I thought I'd offended him in some way.

"I get what you're saying. If you weed out the ones that should be putting their energy into something else, you get to focus on the ones who could be great or those who already are."

"Exactly."

The waitress brought our drinks over and I took a big sip of the cucumber-lime water before I glanced back up at Edward. He was watching me with a discerning eye.

"Pretty impressive Bella, Bella Swan." His grin was huge.

"Ha! Thanks Edward, Edward Cullen. Sorry if I got a little wordy there for a minute. I tend to get incensed about topics that I'm passionate about."

"No, I get it. Talk to me about music and I will go on for hours about why Debussy can run circles around Liszt. I mean Liebestraum No. 3 doesn't even [I] compare [/I] to Clair de Lune."

"Actually, I think the Liebestraum is a far more demanding piece and you aren't giving Liszt enough credit."

Edward's jaw dropped open.

Then it closed.

Then it opened as if he was going to say something.

Then it closed again.

"How do you know Liszt?" he said hesitantly.

The food arrived and I let his question hang in the air until the waitress had left the vicinity.

"I'm not ignorant, Edward. I am a fan of music. I know enough about musicians I like to be able to discuss them."

Wow, what was this, "Pick on Bella Day?"

"No! I didn't mean it that way, really. It's just...nice, is all, to be able to talk about something like that with someone. My sister's idea of music is Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus. It's not pretty. And Jasper! The man is in love with all things Country."

I opened my mouth to protest his apparent hatred of Country music - what about the amazing Lady Antebellum or Sugarland or Alison Krauss, what is wrong with this guy?

"I didn't say I didn't like Country music, Bella." He cut me off. "I'm just saying it gets old real fast whereas the classics never die."

"Beer for My Horses [I] is [/I] a classic," I huffed indignantly.

He snorted as he took a sip of his soda and I thought he was going to choke so, naturally, I laughed my ass off.

We took turns sharing our meals and it was as informal as you could get. I'd reach over and take a forkful of his spicy chicken and he'd take a huge spoonful of my sauteed vegetables.

If you were an outsider who didn't know any better, you'd think we were a couple.

When I had finished up my notes, I motioned for the waitress to bring the check around. She went to hand it to Edward, but I grabbed it instead.

Edward had no choice but to let me pay the bill considering it was a business lunch for work. I signed the receipt smugly and told him that he owed me.

"Oh really?" He elbowed me on our way out the door. "We'll see about that."

I led the way out, waving to the hostess as I went, and as I turned to say goodbye to Edward, he ran right into me, almost pushing me down on my ass.

"Whoa...what are you doing?"

"I was going to say goodbye and walk to my car..."

"Nuh uh. Keep walkin, Swan."

I just stood there and stared at him with a furrowed brow.

"I'm walking you to your car, genius."

"Ohhh. Gotcha."

I turned around, trying my best to seem nonchalant. But I couldn't help the blush that was slowly creeping up my neck at the thought of Edward, very gentlemanly, walking me to my car.

There we were, standing outside my car, not saying anything.

Staring.

I piped in when I couldn't take the silence anymore.

"Ok, well, thank you for coming with me. You gave me a lot of material to choose from for my review. I really appreciate it."

"Thank you for inviting me. I had a great time." For a second, it felt like a date. "I mean, I really wanted to try this place. It was great." He stuttered a bit.

I, Isabella Swan, was making this beautiful man nervous.

And I fucking loved it.

"Any time. Thanks again."

I turned to put my car key in the lock when I felt him hug me from behind, wrapping his arms around my torso, carefully avoiding my girly parts.

His warm breath was at my ear.

"Talk to you soon. Bye Bella."

He kissed my cheek and let go. I glanced back to watch him walk away. It was almost painful.

I got in my car and tried to play it off like I was unaffected by feeling his arms around me, but I was practically vibrating with energy. I watched his car leave right ahead of me and then I pulled out of the lot to head back home.

The drive went by so quickly that I didn't even remember anything but opening my front door and having a small munchkin of a dog jumping at my knees.

I picked her up and spun her around, smiling and laughing and, dare I say, squeeing.

And then she peed on me.

I scared the piss out of my own dog. Worst. Dog-mom. Ever.

Note to self, walk the dog first, THEN spin her around while practically screaming in her face.

I ran her outside without even putting a leash on and let her roam around to finish was she started on my hip.

After she was done, we went back upstairs and I took off my clothes to soak them before I stuck them in the washer.

I grabbed a quick shower and when I came out, Jessie was asleep on my bed. I laid down in my towel next to her and gave her a little snuggle. Then I put on some clean clothes.

My notes were still in my bag, so I grabbed them and set them down next to my laptop before opening it up and launching Chrome.

My heart fluttered when I saw that I already had a message from Edward.


	12. Chapter 11 Strawberry Swing

**Rose POV**

When Emmett told me about his conversation with Bella, I knew I had to ask Bella about the details surrounding Mike and to see if she needed to vent. I know I would if an asshole had ever done anything like that to me, especially in my own home.

Of course, she didn't really want to discuss it anymore when I asked. Maybe talking to Emmett was all she needed or all she could handle; I don't know which, but I was grateful that my monkey man came equipped with a kind heart and a beautiful soul as well as his monster cock.

Bella is the same way. Beautiful inside and out but she just won't believe anyone that tells her so. I really hope she figures it out for herself or she might risk losing something great.

**EPOV**

Do guys get butterflies? Or do we get something more manly sounding like...dragonflies? Yeah, that sounds better. Watching Bella in her car with her eyes closed and her head back gave me dragonflies. She'd looked just like that when I had kissed her in her apartment that first night I met her in person.

When I got out of my car and started towards hers, she opened her eyes and I saw them widen as she watched me walk across the lot. She looked like a mountain lion eyeing its prey. It was hot.

I felt naked under her gaze and I couldn't help but to smirk from this interesting turn of events. I know I've made her nervous at least once or twice and now it seemed like she was giving me a dose of my own medicine.

The lunch was pretty amazing. I watched as the staff of Forks and Spoons fell all over themselves to make sure Bella had everything she needed. She seemed really in her element. I was almost jealous of the amount of confidence she had in her work. This girl continued to surprise me at every turn.

When lunch was over and I walked her to her car, I couldn't help but to touch her. I had to hold her, if only for a second.

I was in so much trouble.

**After lunch… **

**BPOV**

I opened the email from Edward and was immediately excited when I read his words. He was inviting me to dinner tomorrow night to repay me for the "free meal" today.

Dinner. At his house. Which he was cooking.

Swoon.

Of course, I had to say no though.

**EPOV**

My computer pinged as I saw a gChat message from Bella.

_Isabella Swan says..._

Hey, I had a great time at lunch today but we can't have dinner tomorrow night. Sorry.

I felt my stomach sink all the way down to my knees. No wonder she turned from me at the car. She didn't want this. Us. Or whatever form of us we were on right now.

_Edward Cullen says..._

Oh, ok. Well thanks again.

_Isabella Swan says..._

Yeah, I already promised Emmett that I'd have a game night here at the house tomorrow night (which you are definitely invited to). Can we do dinner Saturday instead?

Dragonflies. Lots and lots of dragonflies.

_Several weeks later..._

**BPOV**

"So what the fuck is going on with you and Edward?"

I snarfed my drink. "What do you mean?"

She gave me the side-eye as only Rosalie can and I immediately shrunk down like a dog being reprimanded for sneaking a pizza crust out of the trash.

She pondered my face for what felt like forever and finally she softened. "Bella, I thought I was your best friend. You can talk to me about anything, you know."

I stared at my hands in my lap for a minute and then finally glanced up at her. Her face was anxious, yet comforting. I could tell she was hoping that she hadn't crossed a line which was just crazy because with Rosalie, there generally were no lines.

"Ok. So it's nothing serious or anything, but we've just been hanging around a lot for the past few weeks. Ever since he came to a review sitting with me at that new restaurant, Forks and Spoons."

Game night had gone over really well. We didn't get too drunk (except for Emmett) and, while I didn't get a kiss that night, the tension was palpable.

Edward and I weren't on each other's team for the games but we still wound up sitting near each other and it was surreal. Occasionally his jean-clad knee would rub against my sock-encased foot and I would get a quiver of nerves running through my body. He felt it too; I know he did. He'd stop what he was doing and turn to look at me with a shy smirk on his lips.

God how I missed his lips.

"So you've been seeing him outside of our little group meetups?"

"Well, yeah once or twice, but mostly we just email or gChat while we're working or whenever."

"And why haven't you tapped that yet?"

I think I was snorting more latte than I was actually drinking.

"Rosalie! Jeez, woman. I don't know, okay? He always seems to hold back...like he's waiting for something or just not ready to take it further than it is. I don't know."

"Well you're a strong, independent woman," Rosalie said like this was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I am?" I stared at her wondering if she ever really knew me at all.

"Yes, you are. You should ask him if you want to spend time with him. Don't wait for him to make a move. Show him that you are confident and that any man in his right mind should want to spend time with you."

Nope. She definitely doesn't know me at all. I rolled my eyes and took another sip of my latte.

"At the very least, you can get pounded into the headboard a few times."

My nose burned as the rest of my latte came flying out of my face.

I wound up taking Rosalie's advice and decided to take life by the balls. After a particularly awesome gChat session one day with Edward, I told him that I had the house free for the evening as Rose and Emmett were doing dinner and a movie and then they were staying over at Emmett's.

_Isabella Swan says..._

Yeah so I was thinking we could hang if you want. I was going to cook and maybe rent a movie or two on my way back from the grocery store later. What do you think?

_Edward Cullen is typing..._

_Edward Cullen is typing..._

_Edward Cullen is typing..._

Three fricking times he's started to type and then stopped. I could feel the bile rising in my throat as I waited for him to answer me.

_Edward Cullen says..._

Ok. Can I bring anything?

Seriously? It took him three tries for that?

_Isabella Swan is typing..._

You can be dessert...

I deleted my word vomit and started over.

_Isabella Swan says..._

You can bring dessert if you'd like. Otherwise, I'll take care of the rest. What kind of alcohol would you like?

_Edward Cullen says..._

I actually have a Riesling I've been meaning to try. Can I bring that too?

_Isabella Swan says..._

Edward, do you know me at all? I'm not going to turn down free wine. Bring it. :oD

So the pseudo-date was set. I shut down my computer early, right after I finished printing off one of my go-to recipes for risotto and got my purse to head out to the store.

There was a major sale on cantaloupe so I thought that prosciutto wrapped melon would be a flavorful appetizer to go with the chicken and spinach risotto. I picked up another bottle of wine (or three) and was back home within the hour.

I wanted the food to be as fresh as possible when he arrived so I held off on starting to cook and instead hopped in the shower as soon as Jessie had a walk.

I even shaved my hoohah.

He better appreciate that shit. I don't do it often.

My legs were smooth, my eyebrows plucked. I slipped into a pair of jeans that balanced out my hips with some flaring at the bottom of the pant leg. I put a dark purple tank-top on and then put a white linen button-down t-shirt over top of it to conceal the pudge. I only buttoned the bottom three buttons so the girls were front and center.

Hey, big girls need love too and I was gonna shove those puppies right in his face if I had to.

I towel-dried my hair and it was just wavy enough to have some bounce. It was still technically summer and August in North Carolina means minimal make-up, if any, would even make it through the night, so I went with some tinted lip gloss, mascara, and a touch of powder to keep away the shinies.

About forty-five minutes later, our meal was almost done and Edward was due to arrive any minute. I heard the bell and my heart seemed to stop. Jessie went running to the door and I followed right behind her.

I opened the door and there he was, beautiful, dressed in dark jeans and a royal blue button-down shirt. He looked good enough to eat and all I could think was, "I hope he didn't bring dessert so I can just nom nom nom all over that man." His hair was messy and glossy and gorgeous and I seriously wanted to run my hands through it while he buried his face into my neck and carried me to the...but I digress.

Ok so he dressed up. So he obviously knows this is a pseudo-date or...something. We did this awkward hello where he put his free arm around me for this weird half-hug thing and I patted him on the fucking back. Who does that? Ugh.

There were two bags in his hands and the bottle of wine under his arm so I took the bags from him and he grabbed the bottle and stepped into my little world.

I had a little classical music playing in the background and he smiled in approval. I immediately got my corkscrew out, poured us each a glass of wine, and offered him some melon with prosciutto.

Edward was sitting at my breakfast bar while I was in the actual kitchen area so I reached the tray over the bar for him to take what he wanted. He popped the hors d'oeuvre in his mouth and his eyes bugged out of his head.

"Wow, Bella. This is so good. How did you make this?"

I giggled and put my wine glass down, walking to the fridge. I got out the remaining melon, with the baller still in the bowl, and the package of prosciutto.

"Well you see, you ball the melon, and then you wrap it in prosciutto." I stared at him and waited for a reaction.

"That's it? I thought it took actual skill, Swan, seeing how you're a big, bad food critic and all."

He chased his melon ball with a sip of wine and smiled at me with a nice chunk of prosciutto in his teeth.

Laughing out loud, I put the stuff back in the fridge and leaned in over the bar, my face within breathing distance of his. His eyes darkened and he glanced down at my lips before meeting my eyes again.

"You've got a little something...in your teeth. Might want to take care of that," I said, pulling away and resuming my station stirring the risotto.

I heard him grumble behind me and couldn't help the laughter. I glanced over my shoulder and he was smiling again, meat free.

We ate. We talked. We laughed. We stared.

He told me he was going out of town in two days for a week and he apologized for not telling me sooner but it was a last minute decision at work.

That simple gesture, apologizing for having to leave, hit me with force. He _does_ like me. He wants to spend time with me. He doesn't want to go away.

I rose from the table unable to stop myself. His eyes widened minutely and he froze. I walked to him and leaned down capturing his lips with mine. My arms went around his neck and his immediately went to rest on my hips. He stood up while keeping his lips locked to mine. I felt his hands snake up my sides and then they went around my back into a bone-crunching hug as we kissed.

I don't know that I'd ever been hugged while being kissed before. I've been touched and felt up, but never really hugged this way.

He broke the kiss and stared into my eyes, panting heavily.

"Bella..." he looked torn and sounded pained.

Oh god. I practically attacked him all because he seemed sad at the thought of going out of town for a week.

"Edward, I...I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

"Don't you dare..." he trailed off and kissed me again, hard.

I groaned into his mouth and he tightened his hold on me. I didn't even realize we were moving until the back of my knees hit the bed and we fell down on top of it.


	13. Chapter 12 Set The Fire To The Third Bar

BPOV  
Edward collapsed down on top of me. The bed squeaked from the force of the fall. The radio was on low for Jessie and she was dancing around at our feet which were still dangling off the edge of the bed. Her little yips were anxious; she was nervous that he was hurting me. I tried to soothe her with a calm voice in between kisses and when Edward's hot mouth was on my neck.

One hand held my head to his and the other was rubbing my hip. He slowly, but jaggedly, moved both of them to meet in the center, right around my ribs. I stiffened at the thought that he was touching my fat stomach but when his lips returned to mine, I lost that train of thought quickly.

I tugged at his hair while I thrust my tongue back into his mouth. I was in a frenzy and my body was shaking. He grabbed me around the center and pushed me further up the bed so we could be more comfortable but, as he did, his left hand slipped and slid up the material of my shirt to touch my breast. He froze and snatched his hand away.

"I...I'm sorry, I was just trying to..." he stuttered as his wide eyes implored mine to forgive him for his perceived sexual offense. I took his hand and returned it to my body.

"I liked it. Don't stop. Please." I was not above begging at this point.

His groan was deep and I silenced it with my mouth when it overtook his own.

He palmed my chest and it was as if my nipple called my clit and told it to wake the fuck up, because boy did it ever. _Hmm...wonder if it called shlong distance._

I felt the tingle between my legs grow as my lower body came to life. Edward resumed kissing my jaw and he bit my neck lightly as he went. He removed his hand from my lonely nipple and I opened my eyes to look down at him incredulously, but he had only moved away so he could push my shirt down to have access to my tank top.

He stopped kissing my neck to return my gaze and gently tugged my nipple to see my reaction. I jumped and trembled and I growled at him as I moved my roaming hands down to give his ass a good grab.

Two could play at this game.

He gave a low moan and put his mouth back on mine.

Our excitement was short-lived, however, when Love Machine started playing on the radio and I broke out into a fit of giggles. The timing was ridiculous and then I felt Edward join my laughter as his body started bouncing.

"Unfuckingbelievable," he laughed.

"Yes, unfucking is exactly what just happened."

Oh my god! I can't believe I just said that!

He barked out a deep laugh and I covered my eyes with my hands until he started tickling me and I couldn't help but to let go of my face to shield myself from his attack.

"Hey, don't hide from me. That was funny."

"Yeah, yeah. You're funny. Shut it," I retorted, poorly.

"And you're beautiful. See? Here's proof." His fingers slowly trailed over the beauty marks that freckled my neck and chest. He leaned in to kiss me where the marks were. "Told you. Beautiful." I sighed in contentment.

We laid like that for a few minutes and then I heard him groan as he shifted away from me.

"I should actually get going. I have to do laundry if I'm going to have any clothes to pack for the business trip." He held my hand and brought it to his mouth to plant one gentle kiss on it. "I had a great night Bella. Sorry we didn't get to have our dessert."

I felt myself blush and he chuckled.

We got up and smoothed our clothes down. I walked him to the door and he turned around to say goodnight.

"We'll chat online or text or something while I'm gone, yeah?"

"Yeah. Sounds good." I couldn't hide my smile as he leaned in to give me one sweet kiss on the lips before turning around and heading out to his car.

-

EPOV  
"Edward, can I see you in my office for a second?" My manager was standing in the doorway to his office with a harried look on his face.

"Sure Tyler, I'll be right there." I saw Tanya deCovin, one of the senior floor associates, sitting in one of the chairs in front of Ty's desk and my stomach dropped a little. We dated maybe twice, but she was concerned about her job and blew me off. I chased after her a bit because she was hot and I really wanted to get her in the sack at the time, but it never happened. I hope she didn't snitch to Ty and now I was going to be reprimanded.

I walked into the office and sat in the other guest chair in front of Tyler's desk. Tanya smiled politely at me but there was a hint of smugness to it. Ah fuck.

"Edward, Tanya will be accompanying you to the conference. Something has come up and Beth needs to have a procedure done. I'll be going with her."

Beth was Tyler's wife. A procedure? I hoped it was nothing serious.

"Oh alright. I hope everything's ok."

"Should be fine. Just a precaution." Ever a man of many words, that Tyler. "So I asked Sam to change the ticket over to Tanya. It's all set. All you need to do is show up at the airport. Good?"

"Yeah, that's fine." I said as Tanya piped in with "fine by me."

-

The flight was uneventful. Ty and I had been unable to get seats together so Tanya was a few rows ahead of me and on the other side of the center aisle.

I was kind of excited about the conference. Besides the "Continuing Education" classes that were a part of the package, we were also going to be able to see some of Apple's most expensive gear in action. It was nerd-a-rama and I got a little techie boner just thinking about it.

Tanya and I got settled into our rooms; hers was directly across the hall from mine. She ate peanuts on the plane and was "still full". Claiming her need for "beauty rest," she went into her room for the night and I ordered room service and watched television and scratched my balls. It was a good night.

I shot a text to Bella to let her know that we had landed and gotten settled. She responded a sweet goodnight and I may have rubbed one out to thoughts of my fingers pinching her juicy nipples.

The first day was all introductions and getting reacquainted with people I hadn't seen since last year's trip. I zoned out during one of the many commencement speeches and my eyes casually glanced around the room.

There were a lot of women at this shindig that weren't stick figures. I wonder if they were always here and I never noticed or if this was their first time. Some of them were really beautiful; they had an energy and determination in their eyes that reminded me of Bella. I saw Tanya give an occasional scoff and dirty look when one of the bigger girls walked by and I couldn't figure it out. It's not like they were in competition; it was a frickin business convention.

I don't think I'll ever figure women out.

We represented our location well that night at dinner with four other store managers from our district. It was a decent amount of professionalism with some laid-back conversation thrown in there for good measure.

Day two was totally boring. The continuing ed. classes were mostly how to manage people and the occasional seminar on the importance of professionalism in the workplace. I never understood why this sort of thing had to be taught at a business meeting that the company paid a crapton for, but I wasn't going to argue with a free trip.

That night, we were approached by the manager of our district. He'd apparently been impressed by our performance and had originally wanted to meet with Tyler and I, but he got me and Tanya instead. As soon as Ben issued the invitation, Tanya's eyes lit up; you would have thought she just got crowned Miss Universe the way she went on gushing thanks to him. I guess that's what he enjoyed, though, because he ate it up like the suit he was.

I could already tell this would be a shit night. Schmoozing was not my idea of fun.

We started out with drinks in the hotel bar while the concierge secured us a cab. I guessed we were going to be drinking quite a bit tonight if a taxi was involved.

He was buying us shots and drinks like the zombies were upon us. Ben and Tanya flirted all the way through the appetizers and I did a double take when I saw a wedding ring on his hand.

"So, Edward, this was originally supposed to be for Tyler's and your ears only, but since he saw fit to send Tanya here," he looked at her like she was something to eat, "We want you to take over Ty's job. He's going to be leaving at the end of next month."

"What? Why?"

Ben narrowed his eyes and stared at me. "Personal reasons. Not that it matters. We have high hopes for you, Edward. It would mean a nice jump in salary and quarterly bonuses. Plus another week of vacation time and stock options. This is huge." He held my gaze as if to bring his point home and then cocked his eyebrow. "You interested?"

I glanced at Tanya and her whole demeanor shifted. Suddenly, I was a bacon cheeseburger and she just realized she hadn't eaten in, oh, about ten years or so.

I took the next shot that had been placed in front of me and downed it quickly.

"I need to think about it Ben. It's a big step."

"I agree. Take all the time you need." He smiled a little too sweetly. "Just not too much."

There was no way I could make a decision like this; especially not now when I was well on my way to getting plastered. Maybe a little numbness would do me good. I had never been on the career track with this job; it was more fun than anything else and I only took it because I liked computers and that's what I majored in in college.

I really just wanted to play my music. Some days, I just sat in my office during my lunch and played with the piano app on my iPad. There was so much more to life than to sit in a fucking office for 50 plus hours a week.

The room started spinning and I felt someone touch my knee but I was too drunk to care who. The next thing I knew, we were in another cab and I was leaning up against the rear passenger side window while the cool glass soothed my warm head.

-

TanyaPOV  
Ben was a flirty bastard but, hey, he could make things happen and if I wanted to move up in the company, I needed him on my side. As I helped Edward out of the cab to get him upstairs, Ben placed his business card down my shirt and tucked it into my bra, grazing my nipple with the cardboard edge. He gave me a cocky smile and got back in the cab.

Now I had to go to work. Edward and I hung out a few times but he never seemed interested in anything more advanced than the job he already held, so I dropped him. I needed someone with ambition; someone with goals...and money.

Everything had changed now, though. He was going to be the store manager. That's a lot of clout for someone his age and I needed to be a part of that any way I could.

As we entered the lobby, I waved off the concerned attendant at the front desk and continued to lug Edward towards the elevators as he leaned on me with his arm around my neck. Several times, his hand rubbed against my breast and it felt good.

We got in the elevator and I hit the button to take us to our floor. The doors closed; his arm was still around my neck and his face was on my shoulder. His eyes hadn't opened once since we left the cab, poor baby. I reached up, took his hand in mine, and rolled my nipple with our intertwined fingers, groaning from the sensation.

"Bel...?" He grumbled something incomprehensibly.

"What's that baby?" I cooed to him.

He mumbled something else and his fingers continued to move by themselves; he pinched and pulled at the fabric-covered flesh and it puckered.

"Oh Edward," I moaned. He leaned in to kiss my ear and, when I felt his tongue suck on my earlobe, my panties immediately got wet.

I turned towards him so I could kiss his neck. I reached down to palm his dick through the khaki pants and his hips started pushing into my hand, hard.

"This is going to be hot," I thought to myself as the elevator dinged our arrival.


End file.
